


I'm Still Here

by Mykael



Series: Twinsverse [3]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Adopted Sibling Relationship, Anal Sex, Angst, Childhood Memories, Eventual Romance, Family Drama, Family Fluff, Family Issues, M/M, Parenthood, Vigilantism, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-24 12:34:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 26,995
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16640210
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mykael/pseuds/Mykael
Summary: The Outlaws have broken up and Jason decides to return to Gotham. He and Bruce come to an accord, but Jason has left out one crucial detail; while flying solo after the Outlaws' breakup, he stumbled upon a child trafficking ring linked to Gotham and Bludhaven. He has very specific plans for those involved...and fate has plans for him.





	1. Return

**Author's Note:**

> Weeeell...I suck at Titles, so it's safe to assume that my titles from, now on, are all song titles, lol. :D

_“When will my reflection show, who I am…”_

Dick and Tim sat side by side on the couch in the living room, watching Mulan. It was a tradition that Dick had started when he was still a kid. He and Bruce would take at least one or two nights out of the month to just sit back and relax in the living room, watching movies together. He’d even managed to convince Alfred to join them! Dick often chose Disney movies though; he was a grown man and yet he still had the heart of a kid.

Tim, however, was not paying much mind to the movie. He was working on his laptop. Dick had tried to convince the teen to set it aside for the night, but it was all for naught; Tim often had his head buried in a computer.

“C’mon Timmy, put the laptop away and watch Mulan with me!” Dick tried again, gently tugging at Tim’s laptop. Tim frowned a little and looked up from his work to glare at Dick.

“This case is important, Dick. I need--” Tim started, but then Dick gave him ‘the look’. Few people could stand up to ‘the look’. Dick would flash his best puppy eyes, and that’d be it; game over. Tim glared at him even despite it, but alas, he broke. He couldn’t help but to smile at the man, shaking his head.

“Alright, alright, fine. You win,” Tim replied. Dick grinned like a kid in a candy store and happily snatched the laptop away from him, setting it down on the coffee table and wrapping an arm around Tim’s shoulders. “Anyone ever tell you that you’re a big kid?”

“Plenty of times, but I happen to know that you have a soft spot for Disney, too, Tim. You can’t hide it from me!” Dick chortled, ruffling Tim’s hair.

“Pfft.” Suddenly, the doorbell rang and curiosity brought an abrupt end to movie night. Both Dick and Tim perked up, curiosity piqued as the made their way to the front door behind Alfred to see who it was at this hour. Although, granted, it was still early for them at only 11PM.

Alfred glanced over his shoulder at Dick and Tim and arched an eyebrow. The two of them raised their hands defensive, and retreated back into the room…only to peak their heads out through the doorway. Alfred pulled open the door, and to his surprise--

“Master Jason,” Alfred said, lips curving into a smile. Jason rubbed the back of his neck nervously and flashed a smile, giving a tentative wave.

“Hey Alf. Long time no--” he managed, before Alfred hugged him tight. Jason was a bit taken aback by the sudden gesture, but was more than happy to return it.

“Jason!” Dick called cheerily, making his way to the front door. Jason parted from Alfred and glanced over in Dick’s direction.

“Dick. Hey, been a while,” Jason said softly, rubbing the back of his neck again. Dick grinned and grabbed Jason’s hand, tugging him into the manor.

“Yeah, you’re just in time for movie night!” he chortled. Jason arched an eyebrow.

“You still do movie night?” he asked, his memories flashing back to the nights he, Bruce and Dick spent together on the couch watching Disney movies. There were a few times when Dick relented and let them choose something else. Jason usually leaned more toward action movies. He’d chosen “Dragonheart” one night and conveniently enough, Dick discovered a new favorite movie that night.

“Yeah! It’s just me and Tim tonight. Bruce stood us up tonight to go on patrol. And Alfred can’t watch movies with us because he has to be ready in case Bruce comes back injured,” Dick explained. At the mention of Tim, Jason flinched slightly. Dick seemed to notice it, but thankfully, didn’t comment. In all honesty, Jason was still a bit sour about being replaced as Robin, by Tim. Mostly because, by all accounts, he was better than he had been.

“I see,” Jason murmured. Moments later, he found himself face-to-face with Tim Drake. The teen had a neutral, unreadable expression and Jason was pretty sure he was frowning. He didn’t want to frown (or maybe he did?), he wanted to look less…angry. But he __was__ angry. It wasn’t Tim’s fault he’d been replaced, and yet a part of him still wanted to blame him.

“Replacement,” Jason said before he could stop himself, holding out his hand. Tim frowned a little, but that quickly faded and he shook Jason’s hand.

“Jason. It’s nice to meet you,” Tim said evenly. Jason was frowning again (he was sure he didn’t want to this time. Maybe), but gave a nod in reply.

“Yeah, likewise,” he replied, pulling his hand back from Tim. He turned to Dick, still frowning, and waved his hand dismissively. “Sorry, I didn’t come here for movie night, Dickie. I came to talk to Bruce,” Jason replied. He looked around the room and then back to Dick. “Where’s that little hellspawn?” he asked.

“Damian? He’s out on patrol with Bruce, naturally.”

“Right, of course,” Jason said sourly. He’d been back to Gotham a few times and had met Damian Wayne; Talia and Bruce’s biological son. 10 years old, trained as an assassin from birth, and most certainly a demon, Jason was almost convinced. He and Jason had an antagonistic relationship pretty much from the get go. Of course, Damian mocking him for his death hadn’t exactly help matters much. Though it had been so satisfying to rescue the kid from his own arrogance at one time. Damian refused to speak to him for a month after that.

“They won’t be back for a while. Come on, join us,” Dick urged, steering Jason into the living room. Jason sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He shoved Dick off of him, a little harder than he’d meant to.

“Dick, no. Not right now,” Jason snapped. Dick frowned a bit and gave the man some space.

“Is something wrong?” he asked. Jason sighed again, placing his hands on his hips. He shook his head.

“No. Nothing is wrong. I’ll come back when Bruce--”

“When Bruce what?” came Bruce’s voice as the man came up from the cave in full Batman attire, sans the cowl. Jason straightened up a bit and gestured toward the man’s office. Bruce gave a nod and nodded toward the office for Jason to follow. Dick and Tim stood there as they watched Jason and Bruce’s silent conversation carry on, until the two of them made their way to his office. Tim raced off to the living room and grabbed his computer and Dick flopped down onto the couch beside him.

“What’re we rushing for?” Dick asked. Tim typed away furiously on his keyboard until a camera feed came up in Bruce’s office. Dick looked at it wide-eyed. “Tim, does Bruce know you’ve hacked the cameras in his office?”

“Of course not! Now sssh,” Tim replied with a cheeky grin. The two of them went silent and turned their attention back onto the screen. Bruce entered his office, having changed back into civilian attired, and sat behind his desk. Jason sat across from him. The two of them were silent for a time and both Dick and Tim watched the screen with anticipation.

“I assumed you were still with your team, The Outlaws,” Bruce said evenly. Jason shrugged his shoulders.

“You know how things go. Shit happens. We broke up; Kori left the planet with her sister, and Roy decided to move back to Star City with Lian.”

“What about you?” Bruce asked. Jason shrugged his shoulders.

“I’ve just been doing my thing on my own, like before,” Jason replied. He didn’t bother to mention what ‘his thing’ was, since they both already knew what that was. Another silence stretched between them.

“You’ve been back to Gotham a number of times since--”

“I tried to blow the Joker to kingdom come, you mean? If you’re waiting for an apology for that, don’t hold your breath. I still want that clown’s head on a stick,” Jason growled. Bruce remained stone-faced, betraying no hint of emotion.

Since then, Jason had come back to Gotham, briefly, a few times. Every single time, he and Bruce butted head over Jason’s methods. He was still dealing with the fallout from that battle; the gangs were still vying for control of Gotham, and the homeless down in the Bowery had become...quite antagonistic toward him. He’d done a little digging and found that The Red Hood had improved the lives of a lot of the Bower’s homeless in the time he was there. It would seem they were still pretty pissed with Batman over that.

“Why are you here?” Bruce asked. Jason frowned a it and leaned back into the chair. He was beginning to think this was a mistake. He’d come back to ask…if maybe there was a place for him, here, back in Gotham. He would never admit it out loud, but after all his time with the Outlaws, he’d grown accustomed to having…friends. Family. He would never admit out loud, that he was…lonely. That aside, he was looking for a purpose again. He thought he’d found it, busting criminals across the globe with the Outlaws, but when they broke up and he went back to doing things solo again, he’d found himself at a bit of a loss.

“Nevermind. This was a mistake,” Jason said evenly, getting up from his seat. Bruce rose from his seat as well and stopped Jason in his tracks.

“Jason,” he said in an even tone. Jason paused at the door, looking back over his shoulder. Another silence…”You know there’s a place for you here…if you want it,” he said smoothly. Jason was silent for a moment, before turning back toward Bruce.

“Yeah? That so?” Jason asked a little more harsh that he’d intended. Bruce gave a simple nod.

“Yes. This is…still your home, Jason. Alfred has missed you, you know,” Bruce replied.

_Meanwhile, in the living room…_

“Whaaat? Bruce, you ass, just admit you missed your son, you emotionally constipated--” Dick was nearly shouting at the screen in frustration, all while Tim was trying to shush him.

“Dick, shush! He’ll hear us and know we’re watching!” Tim blurted out, clamping his hand over Dick’s mouth. Dick calmed down a bit and frowned at the screen, pulling Tim’s hand off of his mouth.

“I know, I know. Getting anything even remotely sentimental out of that guy is like pulling teeth,” Dick said flatly, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I think pulling teeth is easier. And less painful,” Tim replied. He and Dick exchanged a look and then started snickering to each other.

“Indeed. No one ever accused Master Bruce of being straightforward,” Alfred said behind them. The two of them jumped, neither of them having heard him coming.

_Back in Bruce’s office…_

“Yeah, I guessed that when he hugged me at the door,” Jason replied with a grin. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, letting out a sigh. “No killing would be a condition, right?”

“For any reason,” Bruce replied. Jason nodded.

“I can work with that,” Jason answered. “I don’t like it, but I can work with it. Anything else?” Jason asked, arching an eyebrow. Bruce was silent for a time and Jason just stood there, waiting.

“What are you planning, Jason? I know you didn’t come back here just to have this conversation, just to come back home.”

“Cynical as ever I see,” Jason shot back with a derisive snort. And yet Bruce waited expectantly. Jason heaved an exasperated sigh and waved his hand. “Alright, fine. I thought I could come back and take control of some of the gangs again.” Bruce opened his mouth to reply, looking rather displeased, but Jason held up a hand and stopped him. “Look, you may not like the idea, but Red Hood can go where Batman can’t and be what Batman can’t be. Crime was on its way down when I was running the streets. I can make it work without killing anyone. I’m offering to help you; I still have connections to the Underworld, both here and abroad.”

“Jason--” Bruce began, pinching the bridge of his nose. Jason tossed a flash drive onto the desk in front of Bruce.

“I was in Metropolis recently. With my Underworld connections and with Barbara’s help, I put that together. It’s a list of Criminal Organizations that are currently trying to muscle their way into Gotham. Consider it a peace offering.”

Bruce picked up the flash drive and stared at it for a while in complete silence. He looked back up at Jason, who stood by passively, waiting. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of silence, Bruce spoke up.

“Very well. I’ll give this a chance. But no killing Jason. For any reason.”

“Just gimme the Joker, and I’m good,” Jason replied with a grin.

“No killing,” Bruce said more sternly. Jason raised his hands defensively.

“Relax Bruce. No killing, I got it. I’ll just seriously maim or injure the fucker. Maybe drown him a little while I’m at it,” Jason answered with a smug grin. Bruce let out an exasperated sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Jason. You’re giving me a headache,” Bruce muttered. Jason grinned from ear to ear.

“Wow. Woke up this morning feeling pretty good, but that just made my day!”


	2. Rebuilding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Gotcha you fuckin’ pricks,” Jason said with a satisfied grin. He finished his chili dog and his fries while he listened in for a while longer. He wanted to gather as much intel as possible before he made his move. He’d wait until they started making the move to Blüdhaven and catch them with their pants down around their ankles. And then he’d send them home to their boss in body bags. Technically, he wasn’t breaking his deal with Bruce either; the man hadn’t said anything about Blüdhaven, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:3

Jason had a few safe houses scattered throughout Gotham City; two down in the Bowery, two in Midtown Gotham, and two in Uptown Gotham. Currently, he was in his own “Batcave” so to speak. It was a long forgotten, and long decommissioned, bomb shelter located beneath the GCPD headquarters. He was quite interested in tracking down that child trafficking ring. He knew he promised Bruce he wouldn’t kill, but child traffickers easily deserved an entire clip.

Jason made his way over to the computer, sitting down in the black office chair and booting the system up. He reached into a bag of fast good and pulled out a chili dog and some fries, munching away we he got to work. Jason wasn’t exactly a computer genius, but he knew his way around a computer. Few people could build a computer as powerful as the Batcomputer, but his was at least in its league. Three large screens lit up above, with a dozen regular sized screens below. He began bringing up everything last piece of intel he’d gathered so far and began looking it over.

Whoever it was that was kidnapping these children, most certainly wasn’t some amateur. They’d specifically chosen Gotham and Blüdhaven to hide out and operate in, which were good choices; crime and corruption ran amok in both cities. Pay the right amount to the right people, buy off a few Police Officers, and you could operate almost completely undetected.

Jason glared at the large screen in the middle. He recognized some of those men from his time in Russia, training abroad before returning to Gotham. He recognized them from an International Weapons and Drug Trafficking gang that operated out of Moscow. He’d never actually had a run in with them, but they’d caught his eye a few times.

“Seems they’ve graduated to human trafficking,” Jason muttered to himself, eyes narrowing. Fortunately, he’d managed to bug their main warehouse here in Gotham. Naturally, it was located down in the Bowery, where crime was the highest, and where Police only begrudgingly went. It wasn’t as bad as it used to be though; Jason was quite surprised to learn that his Right Hand, Blackjack, took over after the Red Hood disappeared, and kept up his “no kids” policy.

Jason tuned into the wiretap he’d set and there he’d sit, waiting for a couple hours, just listening for intel. It was well past 1AM when he’d finally gotten something. Jason sat upright and leaned forward, turning up the volume so as to make sure he didn’t miss a thing.

“Didnja hear? The Bat has been snoopin’ around down here. Gettin’ awfully close to findin’ out about our operation here,” one of the men said. Another cleared his throat. He heard the sounds of children crying in the background, which only made Jason’s blood boil even more.

“Hey! Stop ya fuckin’ cryin’!” another man shouted. A pause…and then “yeah, I heard. We’re packin’ everything up and movin’ everything over ta Blüdhaven. That’s right?”

“Yeah. Might be a little more cramped, but Blüdhaven has dirtier cops and fewer of these Bats knockin’ around.”

“What about that guy, Nightwing?”

“Boss says not to worry about him; he’s not onto us yet.”

“Gotcha you fuckin’ pricks,” Jason said with a satisfied grin. He finished his chili dog and his fries while he listened in for a while longer. He wanted to gather as much intel as possible before he made his move. He’d wait until they started making the move to Blüdhaven and catch them with their pants down around their ankles. And then he’d send them home to their boss in body bags. Technically, he wasn’t breaking his deal with Bruce either; the man hadn’t said anything about Blüdhaven, after all.

2AM rolled around and Jason decided it was time to call it a night. He set the computer to record all of their conversations for the next few hours while he went to rest. Fortunately, he had a bed here in the bunker just in case of such an occasion. Jason made his way over to the bed, stripping off his shirt and flopped down onto it, breathing in and then out. He found sleep within minutes, and got through the entire night without a single nightmare. Taking some time to reflect on Ducra’s teachings had helped him immeasurably.

* * *

The Red Hood made his way down to the Bowery on his motorcycle to meet with his former Lieutenant, Blackjack. He had since donned a new outfit, consisting of a full body suit made of Zylon fibers, with a heavy Kevlar body armor with additional Zylon weave. He wore a black leather jacket with white shoulders, with a red hoodie underneath it, black paramilitary pants, black shin guards, boots, gauntlets, and as per his name, a blood red helmet. He added a little something new to this one, too; namely, a blood red bat symbol on his chest.

The scum bags running the child trafficking ring here in Gotham wouldn’t be on the move until tonight. That left him the whole day to rebuild his network in the criminal underworld of Gotham. The Bowery seemed like a good place to start.

Hood parked his motorcycle in an alleyway nearby and engaged the cloaking on it. From there, he made his way down the stairs and into the abandoned section of subway that many of the Bowery’s homeless took up residence in.

He was a bit surprised by the state of things, however; it almost looked like its own little, thriving community. Things seemed better down here; they had food, clean water, clean clothes, and clean bedding. Armed guards patrolled the perimeter of the subway and the children played pretend, laughing and screaming as they chased each other around.

Blackjack was the first to take notice of the Red Hood. The man grinned from ear to ear and waved him over.

“Hey, boss!” Blackjack called. Everyone seemed to perk up and follow Blackjack with their eyes, and then also noticed the Red Hood. Blackjack stopped before the man and shook his head.

“Things look better here,” he said.

“They are boss. Queenie’s taken over the Drug Trade down here in The Bowery. I’m her Lieutenant, but it’s glad to have ya back. Ya hear to take control of the gangs again?”

“Sort of. I’ll leave you guys to it down here in the Bowery. As for the rest of Gotham…well, I could use a little hand with that.” Blackjack gave a wicked grin in response, patting Hood’s shoulder.

“You got it boss.”

* * *

“Sit down!” one of Red Hood’s men shouted, shoving one of Gotham’s Drug Lords into a seat at a table in the middle of a warehouse. There were five Drug Lords in all, each one of them bound and with a sack over their heads. They struggled a bit, naturally, but there was no escaping. Once they were all seated and Hood’s men had them surrounded, armed with various firearms, Hood made his entrance. He walked casually into the warehouse with a duffel bag in hand. With a simple hand gesture, he ordered his men to remove the sacks covering their heads.

“What the fuck is goin’ on here?! Do you fuckers know who I am?!” Leon snarled, glaring around the room as he struggled against his bonds.

“Heads are gonna roll for this shit,” Tyler Bramford spit in.

“Shut the fuck up. You’re the Hood’s bitches now,” Queenie snapped, slapping Leon in the back of the head. He glared at her, but his attention was drawn to the Hood, after he cleared his throat to get their attention.

“Well if it ain’t the Hood. Mister “I can protect you from Batman”,” Leon taunted. Tyler gave a chuckle of amusement and shook his head.

“I can’t believe you’d show your dumbass back here in Gotham! You got your ass handed to you by the Bat! Some nerve,” Tyler added in. Hood said nothing and walked over to a table nearby.

“Oooh, the silent treatment. The big bad hood thinks he can scare us,” Leon taunted, earning a laugh from the other Drug Lords. Queenie went to smack him, but Hood held up his hand and stopped him. He turned back to the duffel bag and pulled a crowbar out of it, making sure to keep it out of sight of the Drug Lords.

“Last time, I had a grudge guiding my actions,” Hood said smoothly, slowly walking around the table. “That grudge blinded me, made me weak. But now,” Hood began, stopping behind Leon. He raised the crowbar and smashed him in the back of the head with it. Leon yelped in pain as his head banged against the table, followed by a groan. The other Drug Lords flinched in response.

“Y-you--” Tyler began, putting on a brave face. Hood smashed Tyler’s knee, pulling out an agonized scream from him.

“Don’t worry, your knee cap is still intact,” Hood replied, grabbing the man by the throat. He got up in the man’s face, squeezing ever so slightly. “But that could change quickly.”

“What do you want?” Freddy asked a little nervously. Hood, still squeezing Tyler’s throat, glanced over at Freddy.

“I’m so glad you asked, Freddy,” Hood replied, shoving Tyler back against his chair. Hood slowly walked around the table toward Freddy, who looked visibly nervous. Hood tapped the crowbar against his shoulder and stopped behind Freddy. He stood there in silence for a few moments, just letting Freddy sweat it out. Hood suddenly grabbed Freddy by the back of the head, and slammed his face into the table, holding him there for a few moments before letting him up again.

“You scum bags work for me now! Somehow, despite the chaos my left behind by Black Mask, Sofia, and even my absence has caused, you shit bags managed to claw your way back up from nothing, to become the top dogs of the Gotham Drug Trade,” Hood growled at them, rounding the table again. He stopped beside Leon and slammed the crowbar on the table, startling all of them and grabbing their attention. “I’m not fucking around this time. You will work for me, or I’ll do worse than kill you,” he snarled, pulling the crowbar back off of the table.

He turned and moved back toward the table with his duffel bag on it and stowed the crowbar back inside. He reached inside and pulled out a lighter and an aerosol can. He looked back at the Drug Lords who looked increasingly nervous. He kept his eyes on them as he lit the lighter and sprayed the aerosol can, creating a flamethrower.

“I’ll make you wish you were dead,” he said menacingly, tucking both items back inside the duffel bag. He made his way across the room and placed his hands on the table, looking at each of them in turn. “Same terms as before; you kick up forty percent to me, and stay the hell away from children and school yards. Now,” he said, rising to his full height again and crossing his arms over his chest “whose in?”

“Yeah, we’re in, we’re in!” Freddy said nervously.

“I’m good with that,”Chi Chi replied.

“I’m convince,” Tyler muttered.

“Yeah, yeah, we’re in, just don’t fry us or anything!” Leon shouted. Hood chuckled to himself and reached out toward Leon, who flinched nervously. Hood ruffled his hair and chuckled again.

“Good dog,” Hood replied in a taunting tone. He turned to his men and gestured toward the Drug Lords. “Let ‘em go. If they try anything, fuckin’ shoot ‘em.” He promised Bruce he wouldn’t kill. He didn’t say anything about those working for him. As his men started untying the Drug Lords and letting them go, Hood turned on final time toward them. “Oh, and one more thing.” Everyone turned toward the Hood, interested in what he had to say. Hood pointed to Blackjack an Queenie. “Your new bosses are over there.”

Blackjack and Queenie grinned smugly at their new ‘promotion’.

“You got it boss,” Blackjack replied with a thumbs up.

“If they get out of line, I’ll break their legs,” Queenie added in.

“Right then. I’ve got shit to do. You clean up here, and don’t forget; I’m watching.” Hood made his way out of the warehouse and to his motorcycle nearby. He hopped onto it and checked the time; he still had plenty of time to get to Blüdhaven and be ready for those Child Traffickers. He revved the engine and bit and then raced off into the night.


	3. Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hmm. Looks like a profile on the chi-” Nightwing paused, eyes widening.
> 
> “What? What is it?!” Red Hood demanded to know. Nightwing looked up at him and opened his mouth, before closing it again.
> 
> “These kids, are Talia al Ghul's children,” Nightwing blurted out in astonishment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second chapter today, what a surprise! :D Though not really, when you consider that I've _technically_ written this chapter twice before already; once for the other universe, and once, from Talia's perspective. Anywho, enjoy! Much fluff and angst ahead. >:3

Jason sat beside a gargoyle, on top of a building, across the way from the warehouse that the traffickers were keeping the children. He was waiting patiently for any signs of movement and had been here, waiting, for a good half hour already. So far he hadn’t seen a thing, and fortunately, not a trace of Nightwing either. His patience finally paid off though, when a couple of trucks pulled up in front of the building.

“Finally,” Jason muttered to himself, keeping his eyes on the bastards below as they got out of their trucks. He turned to the gargoyle and patted its head. “Sorry buddy, this is my cue.” Red Hood hopped down from the roof, sticking to the shadows as he landed on the fire escape below and, as silently as possible, made his way down and toward the warehouse. Moments later, the men started unloading children from the back of the trucks and moving them into the warehouse. He reached for his gun and loaded it with lethal ammo.

“You fuckers are gonna fry,” Hood growled to himself.

“Whose gonna fry?” came a voice from behind him. Hood turned and cursed mentally; Nightwing.

“What’re you doing here?” Hood whispered back to him. Nightwing shrugged his shoulders, flashing a disappointed look.

“What, did you think I didn’t know something was going down in my own city? I’m a detective, remember? I’ve had my eye on this place for a couple of months now,” Nightwing replied. Hood snorted in response and turned his attention back to the thugs as the finished moving the children inside.

“And the reason you haven’t moved on this place before, is…?”

“Gathering intel. There’s been a lot of suspicious activity here, and I’ve suspected human trafficking of some kind, but I needed to be sure as to what I was up against,” Nightwing answered. “You know, the usual; the nature of the operations there, their numbers, how well armed they were, and so on and so forth.”

“Of course you did,” Red Hood replied. He turned his attention back toward the warehouse, watching as one of the men, brandishing an AK-47, kicked one of the children who was moving too slowly. “I’m going to bath this place in their blood,” Hood growled menacingly. Nightwing gave Hood’s shoulder a squeeze, flashing him a knowing look. He then nodded toward Hood’s guns.

“You didn’t load those with lethal ammo, did you?” he asked. Hood snorted, eyes narrowing at Nightwing.

“Maybe I did. What of it?” Hood snarled, turning his attention onto the thugs as they set up a perimeter. “Child traffickers deserve the full god damn clip.” Nightwing squeezed his shoulder again, gently.

“Blüdhaven is _my_  city. No killing, okay?” he asked. Hood glanced back at him and growled a bit, but Nightwing didn’t so much as flinch. “ _Okay?_ ” he asked again, with more emphasis. Hood refused to answer and turned his attention back toward the warehouse, prompting Nightwing to sigh in annoyance.

“You focus on freeing the children. Let me handle the dirt bags, okay? Promise me that much.”

“Fine. But do me a favor,” Red Hood asked, glancing back at Nightwing. Nightwing flashed a smile.

“What’s that?” he asked.

“Make it hurt,” Red Hood replied, sneaking off toward the warehouse before he got an answer. Nightwing chuckled in amusement before following suit. Sticking to the shadows, he watched and waited patiently for opportunity to come knocking, before disabling the men, one by one. He hid them away so as not to arouse suspicion from any of the other men, nor raise the alarm, before finally sneaking inside the building.

When he finally got inside, his intel fell a little short with reality. There were guards posted all over the place, heavily armed with fully automatic rifles and various melee weapons, but their numbers were greater than his intel had suggested. As he sat in the rafters, surveying the room below, he immediately deduced that things were going to get ugly, no matter which way he cut it.

“Well, here goes nothing,” Nightwing said with a shrug of his shoulders. He drug through his utility belt and dropped a handful of smoke grenades onto the men below. As soon as they exploded, he dropped down, raining a series of strikes on the men with his escrima sticks. Once they were out, he danced back into the shadows, unseen, before reinforcements could arrive.

“What the fuck?!” one man shouted, searching the area frantically as he stumbled upon his unconscious comrades. Several more followed him into the room, all of them on high alert.

“Someone’s here!” another shouted.

“Show yourself!” came a third’s voice.

Nightwing grinned  from ear-to-ear, still hiding in the shadows. This time, threw a flash bang and repeated the process. However, more came around the corner and caught him in the act. He laughed to himself.

“Oh hey there! So glad you could join me! I was beginning to think you were all just sucked at your jobs!” Nightwing taunted, back flipping out of the way as they opened fire.

* * *

Red Hood watched the patrols around the building carefully before sneaking in through one of the back entrances. Once he’d slipped inside, he searched for any signs of the children, careful to avoid detection. He would’ve preferred to go in, guns blazing, and put everyone of these scum bags down like the reptiles they were, but there were children here and he didn’t want to risk putting them in danger. So, stealth it was. One-by-one, he disabled the security staff around and inside the building, until he found a stairwell that led down into a basement level.

Disgust and revulsion washed over him when he passed through the door, sickened by what he saw past the threshold. Children were locked in cages and some of them looked either sick or starving. Others appeared pale and malnourished, but worst of all, frightened. No child should have to live like this; they should be happy, free, playing with their friends without a care in the world.

But that wasn’t even the worst of it; a quick visual scan of his surroundings verified that this place was a laboratory. This wasn’t your typical child trafficking ring; they were _experimenting_  on these children. He wasn’t sure what it was that they were up to exactly, but neither did he care. He was going to get answers, and punish the bastards for this sick shit.

He snuck through the lab, shushing the children as he looked for someone, anyone, he could torture for answers. Fuck interrogation, he was going to make it _fucking hurt._ As if it couldn’t get any worse, he heard infants crying. Infants! His blood _boiled_  in his veins as he mentally imagined all of the ways he could break another human being. His head snapped toward the source of the crying, and rounded the corner. There, he saw a scientist holding a needle, hovering over one of the infants.

“Alright then, let’s begin,” the man said to himself, raising the needle in hand. Red Hood pulled a gun on him and the man raised his hands when he heard the click of the gun.

“Put that needle down, or I’ll blow your brains out all over the fucking wall,” the Red Hood snarled darkly. He heard someone approaching from behind and quickly spun around to see three other scientists approaching him with guns of their own. With three quick shots of his other hand gun, he kneecapped them all. They cried out in pain, and he quickly turned his attention back to the man hovering over the baby.

“Let me go, or I’ll snap his neck,” the scientist said with a sick grin. _Oh, now he’s fucking dead._ Red Hood didn’t hesitate; he pulled the trigger and knee-capped him first, getting him away from the infant. The man fell to the floor, howling in pain. Hood then he pulled the trigger again and blew the doctor’s brains out all over the floor.

The infant began to cry again and Red Hood approached, holstering his guns. He ignored the men behind him, bleeding out on the floor. He pulled his helmet off and placed it on the table, heaving a sigh of relief as the cool air brushed against his sweat slicked skin. It was pretty hot in here, which likely made it all the worse for those poor kid.

The infant, a baby boy, had blue eyes and black hair, tufts sticking out at odd angles, and looked up at him, his crying lessened a little. Hood glanced at the child beside him, also a boy, who was still crying, his hair as white as snow. Neither of these children could be any older than six or seven months. As far as he could tell, these were the only two infants in the entire compound.

He looked up to the ceiling above, the sounds of gunfire and combat echoing above him. He grinned like the devil, just knowing that Nightwing had gotten to work. He turned his attention back to the infants, wondering what in god’s green earth they could need them for. It was made especially puzzling by the fact that they were the only infants in the entire compound.

He then turned back to the doctors bleeding out on the floor; one of them was still conscious. Hood strode over to the man and fisted his hair, ignoring his pained whimpering as he hauled the man to his feet and shoved him against the wall.

“Tell me what’s going on here, _now!_ You do, and I’ll bind that wound and let you live,” Red Hood said harshly, drawing a gun and pointing it toward the dead doctor “you don’t and you’ll end up like your friend over there.” The man gulped and Red Hood pressed the barrel against his jaw. “I’m assuming you like your brain inside your skull, as opposed to splattered across the floor.”

“Okay, okay! I’ll talk!” the man said frantically, borderline weeping in fear. He swallowed and Red Hood waited. The doctor swallowed again and then finally spoke.

“We-we were hired by Lex Luthor! H-his mercenaries pick up stray children, runaways, homeless kids, s-sometimes kidnap them-”

“What for?!” Red Hood interrupted sharply. The man yelped in fear and continued slowly.

“G-genetic experiment. W-we separate the children by g-genetic potential! A-and then we run...experiments.”

“What kind of experiments?!” Red Hood snarled, but his interrogating was interrupted by the sound of another person approaching. He spun around and saw Nightwing behind him.

“What the hell?” Nightwing blurted out, staring around the room in a mix of shock and anger; not at the wounded scientists, it didn’t look like he could care about them, but at the children.

“Please, I don’t know anything else!” the man pleaded. Red Hood snarled and smacked him in the head with the butt of his gun, knocking him out. He stalked past Nightwing and began unlocking cages.

“There are a couple of infants over there. Need your hacking skills on the computer nearby, maybe get some answers,” Red Hood said evenly. Nightwing glanced back at Red Hood, his eyes falling upon the dead scientists in front of the counter. He spun around toward Hood and shot a glare.

“I said no killing! Dammit Hood!” Nightwing shouted angrily. Hood spun around and shot him a glare.

“That fucker had his hand around a baby’s throat. I’m not gonna apologize for wasting that sick fucker,” Hood shot back. He gestured toward the kids again and said “besides, we have more pressing issues, in case you haven’t noticed.” Nightwing shot him a dirty glare before moving toward the two infants, his eyes falling especially upon the child with the snow white hair, arching his eyebrow curiously. He looked down at the little boy with the black hair, who cooed when he saw him. Nightwing smiled at the kid before moving toward the nearby computer and began hacking into the database.

Red Hood had the children wait nearby; he wasn’t going to take chances and let them wander off on their own. Instead, he moved to Nightwing’s side; he wanted answers.

“These two are the only infants in the entire compound. It’s like they singled these two out, specifically. Why?” Red Hood asked. Nightwing held up a finger, silencing him as he continued hacking in.

“I’m in. This operation is run by Lex, big surprise. Running his sick genetic experiments again. There’s not really a lot here to tie him to the operation, beyond mentions of his name and his company. All circumstantial evidence. The only solid evidence here makes it seem as if this operation is a rogue element of Lex Corp,” Nightwing explained. Red Hood snorted.

“Typical.”

Nightwing continued clacking away at the keyboard, digging further into the system before it began crashing.

“Shit! We’re losing everything! It must be some kind of termination protocol!” Nightwing hissed, trying to recover some of the data on a USB. He cursed when the computer finally died and slid the USB into a compartment on his gauntlet.

“Dammit. I got some, but I don’t know what we have. Couldn't find anything on the infants,” Nightwing said, flashing Red Hood an apologetic smile. Hood sighed and raked a hand through his hair before donning his helmet again.

"Wait, what’s this?” Nightwing asked suddenly, kneeling down beside the counter. He lifted up a folder, hidden partially underneath the counter and flipped it open.

“Hmm. Looks like a profile on the chi-” Nightwing paused, eyes widening.

“What? What is it?!” Red Hood demanded to know. Nightwing looked up at him and opened his mouth, before closing it again.

“These kids, are Talia al Ghul's children,” Nightwing blurted out in astonishment. The Red Hood quickly pulled off his helmet again with a look of shock dominating his features. Both he and Nightwing glanced back down at the two infants. The white haired boy still fussed and squirmed a little, but the black haired boy giggled happily, his little legs and arms flailing.

“They're Talia’s kids?!” Jason asked incredulously.

“Yes they are,” came a voice behind them. Red Hood and Nightwing spun on the spot and watched as Talia approached. She eyed the scared children as she passed by them, stopping before the two vigilantes. “You should take those children out of here and get them to safety,” Talia said casually. She smirked and a little and said “hello Jason. Dick,” she said to each of them in turn. Both Jason and Dick scowled, turning back to the children, who, thankfully, were out of earshot.

“Just blurt it out why don’t you,” Jason snapped.

“I was hoping to get here before you, but it seems I was a bit too slow,” she said with a frown, pushing past the two men and gently picking up the two infants.

“What are their names?” Dick asked, looking over her shoulder. Talia turned to Jason then and pushed the children into his arms. Jason spluttered, cradling the two of them in each arm.

“W-what-” Jason stammered glancing back and forth between the children.

“They’re twins and their names are Kaden and Keiran,” Talia said coolly, crossing her arms over her chest “Kaden and Keiran Todd.” Both Dick and Jason flinched at the name, exchanging glances.

“Kaden and Keiran what?!” They both shrieked in unison. Kaden started to cry when they yelled, while Keiran just fussed and squirmed in Jason's arms. Jason looked down at the twins, then desperately to Dick. He started to rock the children gently, making soft ‘ssh’ sounds, trying to calm them.

“Wait, are you saying-” Dick asked incredulously

“That they're Jason's sons? I am,” Talia replied coolly.

“But then that would mean you and he-”

“We did.”

“I...you...he...what?” Dick asked, completely confused. Jason’s face was painted pink and Dick glared at him.

“Explain. Now,” he demanded. Talia just sat back and watched them both with amusement. Jason sputtered a bit, trying to find the right words, his face as red as a tomato.

“Er...Talia and I...that is...we kinda...had revenge sex about a year ago?” Jason admitted with a shrug of his shoulders and a nervous chuckle. Dick looked at him incredulously, his jaw dropped.

“You had revenge sex with Talia?! What to get back at-”

“Ssssh,” Jason hissed as he nodded toward the children. Dick looked at them both, face turning into a scow. He looked back to Jason and glared at him.

“You suck. We’re not done with this yet, you asshole,” Dick snapped, the two of them turning toward Talia now.

“Wait, you had my kids and you didn’t even tell me?! Why?!” Jason demanded to know. Talia smirked a bit and shrugged her shoulders.

“Woman’s prerogative,” she replied. Jason was about to speak again, but she cut him off “the kids were an accident. As for why I didn’t tell you, that’s my business...” With that said, Talia turned and left. Jason called after her, but the woman completely ignored him.

“Come on, let’s take care of these children and deal with this” Dick began, looking at the now sleeping twins in Jason’s arms “later.”


	4. Twins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason was passed out on the couch, sitting upright with his head tilted back. Keiran was fast asleep in his lap in fetal position, and Kaden was wrapped protectively in Jason’s arm, his cheek pressed against the man’s side. Dick cooed quietly to himself and slipped his phone out of his pocket, snapping a few pictures for later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare your teeth for cavities.

Jason had been prepared to take the twins back to Gotham with him, but Dick wasn’t having it. Dick argued that Jason was most definitely not equipped to drive back to Gotham, with one child, let alone two. Dick had put his foot down and made it clear they were taking the twins back to his apartment just across the city. Jason couldn’t really argue, much as he wanted to, because he knew a motorcycle, with no side car, was not a vehicle to carry children on.

And so the two of them made their way back to Dick’s apartment. Dick typed a few commands into his gauntlet and summoned his Nightcar. Jason was, to say the least, impressed with it. Soon enough, they arrived back at Dick’s apartment, with Jason following on his motorcycle. They changed back into civilian attire and then made their way up the stairs to the apartment. Jason had Keiran, the white haired boy, in his arms, and Dick was carrying Kaden. The two of them were fussing, but otherwise seemed okay.

Dick entered the apartment and flicked on the light and Jason followed him inside. He made a disgusted face at the state of Dick’s apartment; there were clothes everywhere, including on the couch. The coffee table had a cereal bowl on it with a spoon in it, as well as an empty juice glass, coffee cup, newspaper articles, magazines and a laptop. The place was a disaster.

“Dick, how the hell do you live in this pigsty?” Jason said flatly. Kaden started to cry so Dick bounced him in his arms and made little shushing noises.

“Come on Jason, it’s not that bad,” Dick answered, setting the little boy on the floor as he started cleaning off the couch. Jason snorted and muttered to himself ‘not that bad’. Once the couch was cleaned off, he cleared off the coffee table a little bit, and then closed his bedroom door. He turned to Jason and raked a hand through his hair.

“Alright, I’ll be right back,” Dick said smoothly. Jason arched an eyebrow.

“And where the hell are you going?” Jason asked. Dick quirked an eyebrow and hooked a thumb over his shoulder toward the door.

“Uh, to get supplies for the babies?”

“And what, you’re just gonna leave me here with these kids?” Jason asked incredulously.

“Uh, yeah. You’ll be fine, Jay. And besides, I won’t be gone lone!”

“I’m not that great with kids, least of all babies! If anyone should stay, it’s you! Lian adores you, for reasons I can’t possibly fathom,” Jason replied, joking with the last bit. Dick smirked and rolled his eyes.

“Ha ha, very funny. Jason, you don’t even know what to pick up. Just look after them while I’m out, and I’ll be back in twenty minutes, tops,” Dick replied, winking at him. Jason glowered at him, and looked back and forth between Keiran in his arms, and Kaden who was swinging around one of Dick’s t-shirts he’d pick up off the floor.

“Alright, fine,” Jason replied, pinching the bridge of his nose. With that settled, Dick left Jason with the twins and took his Nightcar. He’d built it himself and included an ability to transform into another car of similar size. As a standard civilian vehicle, he disguised it as a blue 1999 Porsche Panamera.

He stopped by a twenty-four hour pharmacy and picked up the basics; diapers, bottles, formula, pacifiers, a couple of sets of clothes, and some baby toys. He bought a couple of car seats while he was at it, and installed them both in the backseat, right there at the store, then packed everything else in the trunk before heading home.

The drive back had given Dick some time to think about this situation. The first thing they really needed to discuss was what they were going to do with the boys. Talia didn’t seem to want him, which really pissed him off, and he didn’t want to suggest it to Jason, but maybe it would be best to put them up for adoption? It killed him a bit inside to even _think_  that, but he didn’t think there was any way Jason could care for a baby, let alone two. And twins no less! Twins could be a real handful.

Dick parked the car out in front of the apartment building and started grabbing bags out of the trunk. He looked up toward the window of his apartment and let out a deep sigh. The impending conversation was not going to be an easy one. For the time being though, maybe he could just let it go and deal with it in the morning?

Dick dragged the bags up the stairs to his apartment up on the second floor. He gave a smile and a nod to his neighbor, Thomas, who worked the graveyard shift at at the BPD, and stopped before his apartment, fishing through his pockets for his keys. He unlocked the door and nudged it open with his shoulder, closing it again behind himself with his foot. He kicked his shoes off at the door and sighed. The sight that awaited him, however, was well worth it.

Jason was passed out on the couch, sitting upright with his head tilted back. Keiran was fast asleep in his lap in fetal position, and Kaden was wrapped protectively in Jason’s arm, his cheek pressed against the man’s side. Dick cooed quietly to himself and slipped his phone out of his pocket, snapping a few pictures for later.

“This is so damn adorable! Totally gonna use this against him later,” Dick snickered to himself as he retreated to his bedroom to retire for the night.

* * *

Light pierced the blinds of the bedroom window, striking Dick’s closed eyes and dragging him back to the world of the waking. Dick blinked his eyes a little bit as he lay on his stomach on the bed, arms wrapped around his pillow. He gave a deep yawn before finally pushed himself up into a sitting position, letting his legs dangle over the bed. His mind was in a bit of a fog; he still felt a bit of exhaustion from the mission last night. It cleared pretty quickly though, when he remembered that Jason was a father.

Dick pulled himself out of bed, rubbing the back of his head as he padded over toward his dresser and grabbed out a pair of jeans and a pacific blue t-shirt. He pulled his clothes on and then nonchalantly made his way out of his bedroom. He glanced first toward the couch where Jason and the twins had fallen asleep, but it was vacant.

“Aaah. C’mon, open up,” came Jason’s voice from the kitchen. Curious, Dick shuffled in to the kitchen, but stopped in the doorway at what was, perhaps, the second most adorable sight he’d ever seen in his life. “There ya go, kiddo,” Jason said to baby Keiran as he hand fed baby food to the little boy. Keiran giggled happily as baby food ran down his chin. Jason looked genuinely happy, giving a chuckle as he wiped it off of the boy’s chin with a napkin. They didn’t have any highchairs, so Jason had the twins each sitting on a chair. He had turned his chair away from the table and brought two chairs around the table, in front of him and set the twins in them, keeping them close so he could make sure they wouldn’t fall.

“Your turn, Kades. Open up! Say ‘aaah’!” Jason said to baby Kaden, dipping the spoon back in the bottle to feed Kaden. Kaden stared at it for a few moments, his lips sealed shut. Jason glanced over at Keiran and nodded to the boy. “C’mon, Keiran likes it,” he said. Kaden finally opened his mouth and Jason fed him the food. Kaden gave a shrill giggle, his little arms waving through the air. Jason set the jar of baby food aside for a moment and reached for his coffee cup, taking a sip. Keiran gave a little frown and fussed, his little arms reaching toward the food.

“Hey, calm down kid, I’ll feed you in a second. Little porker,” Jason joked, prompting Dick to laugh. Jason looked toward Dick and raised his cup in greeting, before taking another drink. “Morning Dickie,” Jason said in a rather cheerful tone.

“I see your morning is off to a good start,” Dick replied, padding into the kitchen and over toward the refrigerator. Jason picked the jar of baby food back up and turned back to the twins.

“Not exactly,” Jason said flatly, feeding Keiran. He glared over at Dick and said “these two little brats woke my ass--”

“Butt,” Dick corrected, earning another glare from Jason. Dick ignored it and pulled the eggs and bacon out of the refrigerator, padding over toward the stone.

“They woke me up at four in the morning, screaming their heads off! It took me a while to figure out they were hungry. What kind of kids are hungry at four in the morning?!” Jason asked, pinching the bridge of his nose. Dick laughed in response as he got to cooking breakfast for himself and Jason.

“Well, you seem to be having a good morning now though,” Dick replied. Jason just glanced in his direction before he got back to feeding the babies.

Dick poured himself a cup of coffee and sipped it while he cooked breakfast. Once he was finished he loaded everything onto plates and set one down on the table for himself, and another in front of Jason.

“Thanks,” Jason muttered as Keiran and Kaden finished off the last of the baby food. Jason then set the twins down on the floor to play while he fished a set of blocks for them to play with out of one of the bags Dick had brought home last night. The twins played in relative silence, with a bit of babbling and giggling here or there.

The two men ate breakfast in relative silence. Thoughts from last night, of the impending conversation, were weighing heavily on Dick’s mind. He hated the mere thought of even suggesting adoption for Jason, and yet, a part of him thought it might be for the best. He stalled for now, preferring to eat breakfast in peace. Seeing Jason with the twins only made it even harder to have that conversation.

“Jason,” Dick finally said after the two of them had finished breakfast. He stared down at the table as he spoke, finding himself unable to look at the man. “What I’m…about to suggest won’t be easy to hear. I’ve given it some thought, and maybe it would be best if--”

“No,” Jason said firmly, staring down at the twins playing with the blocks happily.

“You haven’t heard what I--” Dick began, looking up from the table. Jason got up and picked the two boys up, one in each arm and glared at Dick.

“I already know what you’re going to say, and the answer is no,” Jason interrupted, making his way into the living room. Dick huffed in annoyance and got up from the kitchen table, following Jason into the living room. Jason set the boys down on the couch when they started to cry. Dick’s frown faded as he made his way over to see what the problem was.

“Oh god, I already know what’s up,” Dick blurted out, waving a hand in front of his face. Jason did likewise, and backed up from them.

“Damn. How does such a little thing make such a big stink,” Jason added in, earning a laugh from Dick. Dick knelt in front of Kaden and Keiran and then gestured toward the bags of baby supplies nearby.

“Jay, can you get me a couple of diapers, the baby wipes, and the baby powder?” Dick called, removing their diapers. Jason nodded and rifled through the bags for what was asked, handing it all to Dick. Dick also grabbed the empty bag and set it aside. Jason watched as the man cleaned, powdered, and changed the infants, with a bit of surprise.

“There you go!” Dick said cheerily, discarding the diapers into the empty shopping bag. Jason took care of those, holding the bag at arm length and dumped it into the trash can. When he came back to the living room, Dick was happily playing with the twins, blowing raspberries on their little tummies. Shrill giggles filled the room, and Jason watched with amusement.

“Where’d you learn to take care of kids?” he asked. Dick glanced over his shoulder with a smile on his face and waved his hand.

“I’ve babysat Lian a number of times. Roy would bring Lian to me when no one else was available,” Dick replied. Jason nodded to himself and padded back over to the three of them. Another silence filled the air between them.

“Listen, Jason--”

“Dick, I said no. They’re…they’re my sons. I _can’t_  just give them up for adoption,” Jason said evenly, staring down at the twins from his place on the couch. He looked back up at Dick, and Dick flinched a little at the look on his face; the man was serious about this. “I’m _not_ just going to abandon them. This is…my chance. To be a _father_ , to be better than _my_ parents.” Jason smiled at Keiran as the little boy grabbed his hand. Dick hated himself for this, but it had to be said.

“How’re you gonna take care of them, Jay? The vigilante life is dangerous and you don’t have a job!” Dick argued. He ran a hand through his hair and added “I know you want to be a father, and I can see this means a lot to you, but you have to be realistic!”

“Realistic?! Oh yeah, I’ll just be realistic and give them up for adoption! Then they can grow up feeling abandoned!” Jason shouted, jumping off the couch and glaring at Dick.

“That’s not--”

“No! That’s my final answer!” Jason shouted. The twins started to cry at the loud noises of their arguing and Dick and Jason each grabbed a baby in their arms, bouncing them a little and making shushing noises.

“Aw, don’t cry, it’s okay!” Dick cooed as he bounced little Keiran in his arms.

“We didn’t mean it,” Jason added, pressing a kiss to Kaden’s forehead. After a couple of minutes, the twins calmed down a bit. Jason and Dick turned to face each other.

“Look, maybe we should go to the manor and see Alfred and Bruce. See what they think. At the very least, they deserve to meet these two,” Dick suggested with an ear-to-ear smile. Jason frowned at the suggestion because he knew Bruce would make the same suggestion Bruce had; give the twins up for adoption. On the other hand…

“Fine. But my answer is going to be the same. I’m keeping them. I’ll figure it out,” Jason replied. Dick gave a curt nod.

“Right then. We should get them dressed,” Dick suggested. He and Jason lay the twins on the couch. Jason stayed to watch them while Dick went over and dug through the bags. He came back and handed Jason a pair of little jeans and so they each dressed a twin.

“Really Dick?” Jason asked, arching an eyebrow as the man produced a Batman and a Superman t-shirt. Dick snickered in amusement.

“What? I thought it’d be adorable!” Dick replied. Jason smirked and rolled his eyes, pulling the superman t-shirt on Kaden while Dick garbed Keiran in the Batman t-shirt.

“You’re such a fucking nerd,” Jason replied. Dick glared at him and cuffed him in the back of the head.

“Jay, language!” Dick scolded.

“I could use hand gestures if you’d prefer,” he joked, sticking out his tongue at the man. Dick rolled his eyes and shook his head.

“I feel like I’m the only adult in the room.”

Jason snorted in response.


	5. News

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So, let me get this straight,” Bruce began, looking up at the two of them. Jason and Dick exchanged glances before both turning back to Bruce. The man pointed to Jason for a moment and continued “you had sex with Talia, Kaden and Keiran were born,” he turned to Dick “and then you and Jason met up in a joint investigation of a child trafficking ring that turned out to be an illegal genetic experimentation laboratory, funded by Lex Corp. You then found the twins, then Talia showed up and dumped them in your arms?”
> 
> Jason nodded curtly and said “yeah, that pretty much sums it up.”

Dick drove and Jason sat in the passenger’s seat. They buckled the twins into the car seats in the back, and off they went for Gotham City. Kaden and Keiran ended up sleeping through most of the drive, which was a godsend, really. But it took a bit longer than the usual twenty minutes, because Dick was driving slower than usual. Jason was silent through most of it, and Dick knew why; he was anxious. He’d known Jason long enough to know what he was thinking and feeling at least half the time. Even despite dying and coming back, and how much he’d changed, there were some things that really didn’t.

Dick had wanted to talk to him, and even tried prodding him to share a few times, but he’d only gotten a word or a short phrase in response, so he let it go. But finally, after a long, forty minute drive, they arrived at the manor. Dick glanced over at Jason as he pulled up, through the front gate, and parked in the front. Jason’s leg was bouncing and his fingers were tapping.

“Jason, relax,” Dick said in a soothing tone. He flashed a smile and placed a hand on the man’s shoulder. Jason relaxed a little and glanced over at Dick. “Everything’s gonna be fine. It’s not like he’s gonna--”

“Batarang me in the face?” Jason asked with a smirk, arching an eyebrow. Dick couldn’t help but to laugh. He reached over, taking a chance, and enlaced his fingers with Jason’s.

“Come on, what’s really going on?” Dick asked. Jason blushed a little and looked down to their joined hands. He pulled away and instead, raked a hand through his hair. It was weird, Dick being like this with him, especially after…well..everything. It wasn’t like they were together, or anything. Not really. Technically, they’d never actually broken up, because, well, he had died. Dick seemed interested in picking up where they’d left off; Jason wasn’t so sure.

“It’s…” Jason paused. He wanted to tell Dick what was actually going through his head, but he never really was very good at _sharing_. Especially not… _feelings_. Dick might’ve worn his heart on his sleeve, but Jason’s was much more well guarded. “It’s nothing. Let’s just get this over with,” Jason replied, hopping out of the car. Dick frowned a little but gave a curt nod and followed suit. The two of them each grabbed a twin and then made their way to the front door. The boys fussed and whined a little bit at being woken up though.

Dick rang the doorbell and within a minute, the door opened up with Alfred standing just beyond the threshold. His usual greeting was stalled as he looked back and forth between the two children Dick and Jason were carrying.

“Master Dick. Master Jason. And who are our young guests?” Alfred asked. Dick and Jason exchanged a look, had a brief, silent conversation, and then turned back to Alfred.

“It’s complicated. We’d rather only tell the story once, if you don’t mind,” Jason replied. “Where’s Bruce?” he asked. Alfred stepped aside and gestured toward the inside of the manor.

“He is currently down in the cave,” Alfred answered. Dick and Jason made their way inside without further hesitation. The duo made their way through the manor and to the grandfather clock, pressing the hidden switch inside and then passing through the hidden passage behind the clock. It shut automatically behind them and then they began the descent, down the long, winding stairs, down into the cave.

The first thing they became aware of, even before reaching the bottom of the stairs, were the sounds of combat. As the two of them entered the cave, Tim and Damian were sparring back and forth, both in their own, respective costumes. Tim swung his bo staff and Damian met his attack with a katana blade.

“Tt, you’re _almost_  in _my_  league, Drake,” Damian taunted, donning a smug grin. Tim growled and spun his bo staff over his head, throwing a few fierce strikes in Damian’s direction and putting him on the defense.

“ _Your_  league? What’s that, the two feet and under club?” Tim taunted back. Jason let out a bark of laughter and Damian’s attention was drawn away from Tim, momentarily It was just enough time to Tim to sweep the leg and knock Damian off his feet. “Looks like I win,” Tim replied, pointing the tip of his bo staff at Damian’s throat. Damian snorted and batted the staff away, getting back to his feet.

“You got lucky, Drake,” Damian snorted. He and Tim soon turned their attention onto Dick and Jason, but before they could even register the kids, Ace, a German Shepherd, bounded past them and started jumping at the two of them.

“Hey Ace, whose a good boy!” Dick said cheerily, patting the dog’s head. Ace barked, his tail wagging wildly.

“What are those?” Damian asked with a snort.

“They’re called ‘babies’ Damian,” Dick answered. Damian rolled his eyes in annoyance.

“But whose are they?” Tim asked. Jason waved his hand dismissively.

“In a minute. We’re here to talk to Bruce.”

“Indeed, I’m quite curious to hear the tale as well,” Alfred put in, coming up from behind them with a tray of tea in hand. Dick and Jason glanced back at the man who held the tray out to offer them tea. “Earl Gray and Cinnamon Tea. Your favorites, of course,” Alfred said. The two of them took a cup of tea and then made their way into the cave.

“Dick. Jason,” Bruce acknowledged without turning around.

“Bruce, we’ve gotta talk,” Jason called. Bruce turned around in the chair, and in that moment, Jason wished he’d had a camera. It was exceedingly rare to catch Bruce Wayne unawares, or even to surprise him. This was one of those times. He stared at the two children in surprise and then looked up to Dick and Jason.

“Who are these kids, and what are they doing here?” Bruce asked, arching an eyebrow. Jason couldn’t help it; the desire to see the look on Bruce’s face was much too strong.

“These are my sons, Keiran and Kaden,” Jason replied, gesturing to the white-haired boy and the black haired child, respectively.

“What?!” everyone, save Alfred, practically shrieked in unison. Dick jabbed Jason in the side with his elbow and glared at him, but Jason was too busy laughing at the surprised look on Bruce’s face.

“Explain,” Bruce demanded. But Keiran and Kaden began fussing and whining; they wanted down.

“Right, but first--” Dick began, but Tim interrupted.

“I’ll watch them! And Ace will help me. You know how much he likes kids,” Tim said cheerily. Jason and Dick exchanged a look and then set the twins down on the floor. Ace bounded over, tail wagging excitedly as he licked their faces. The twins’ shrill laughter echoed throughout the cave as the dog jumped back and lay his front down on the floor, butt in the air and tail wagging excitedly.

“C’mon on Ace, let’s go play with the babies!” Tim practically chortled, picking the twins up and carrying them toward the stairs. Ace followed after him, prancing around like a puppy all the while.

“Aren’t you curious to find out where they came from?” Dick asked. Tim shrugged his shoulders.

“If it’s important, I’ll find out later. Ow!” Tim exclaimed as Keiran grabbed a lock of black hair and tugged on it. Jason and Dick chuckled at the sight and turned back to Bruce.

“I’ll save us all a long and boring story,” Damian said flatly, crossing his arms over his chest. Everyone, save Alfred, turned their attention onto Damian. Jason snorted.

“This should be good.”

“It’s obvious. Todd slept with some slattern he picked up off of a street corner. Mystery solved,” Damian said flatly. Jason snorted again and rolled his eyes.

“You couldn’t be more wrong, kid. They’re your mother’s kids,” Jason retorted, his lips curling into a smirk. Damian flashed a look that seemed to be somewhere between horrified and furious.

“What did you just say, Todd?!” Damian shouted.

“You heard me! Those boys are your half-brothers, you little--”

“Master Damian, Master Jason, enough of your quarreling,” Alfred cut in, with Dick stepping in between the two of them and pushing them away. Bruce seemed a bit surprised to learn that the children were Jason and Talia’s. If he was pissed about it, he didn’t show it.

“Tell me everything,” Bruce said sternly. Dick and Jason exchanged looks and then decided to fill him in. So they explained about the mission with Jason explaining how he had tracked them from Russia, to Gotham and Blüdhaven. They explained how they rescued the children, finding Kaden and Keiran amongst them, how they found ties to Lex Luthor but that there was nothing they could prove in a court of law. They explained how they found Kaden and Keiran, and lastly, how they learned about the twins’ origins. Once again, if Bruce was angry about learning that Jason and Talia had slept together, he didn’t show it. But neither did Dick or Jason miss the rather…perturbed look on his face at the mention of it, either.

“So, let me get this straight,” Bruce began, looking up at the two of them. Jason and Dick exchanged glances before both turning back to Bruce. The man pointed to Jason for a moment and continued “you had sex with Talia, Kaden and Keiran were born,” he turned to Dick “and then you and Jason met up in a joint investigation of a child trafficking ring that turned out to be an illegal genetic experimentation laboratory, funded by Lex Corp. You then found the twins, then Talia showed up and dumped them in your arms?”

Jason nodded curtly and said “yeah, that pretty much sums it up.” An uncomfortable silence settled over the room; Jason and Dick fidgeted nervously, and Bruce just sat there like a statue.

“So then,” Bruce began, breaking the silence, but he never got the chance to speak.

“Before you say anything, the answer is no. Adoption is _out_  of the question. I’m going to raise _my_  sons myself.” Bruce’s eyes narrowed a bit as he leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers.

“I figured you might say that. But tell me something; how do you plan to take care of him? Do you even have an apartment of your own?” Bruce asked. Jason went to answer, but Bruce interrupted, adding “and I’m not talking about a safe house, either. I mean a real apartment.” Jason fell silent almost immediately. Dick snickered beside him in amusement, and that earned him an elbow from in his side from Jason.

“Furthermore, how do you plan to pay for all of the things they need? With extortion money?” Bruce asked critically, arching an eyebrow. Jason glowered at the man, not liking where this conversation was going.

“Okay, first of all, I’m not accepting your money. Second, I’m not moving into the manor. And third, I’m my own man. I’ll take care of my own shit.”

“Language, Master Jason,” Alfred chided. Jason raised his hands defensively.

“What about that trust fund you set up for him, years ago?” Dick asked. Bruce’s eyes narrowed.

“It’s gone,” he replied. Dick looked at him incredulously.

“Gone? What do you mean, it’s gone? You said you were going to set that money aside for Tim--”

“It disappeared years ago; the account was hacked and the theft was untraceable. Whoever did it, knew what they were doing.” Jason fake coughed and raised his hand until everyone looked toward him.

“No way you did it Todd. You’re not that smart,” Damian hissed. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have better things to do.” Jason was content to ignore him. He grinned from ear-to-ear and shrugged his shoulders.

“I hacked the account the day I came back to Gotham. It wasn’t that hard. In fact, it was the first thing I did. Sort of an advance to set my plan in motion,” Jason replied. Bruce’s eyes narrowed, but he didn’t seem very surprised. “I know my way around a computer.”

“Yes. You do,” Bruce replied with the faintest hint of a smirk. It was Alfred’s turn to speak though. The man cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Do you know what taking care of a child entails?” Alfred asked from behind them.. “I have raised children before. Including you, Master Bruce, since you were an infant.” Bruce nodded to him and the man continued “the child will wake up at all hours of the night, he’ll require constant attention, diaper changing, feeding, burping, etcetera, etcetera. And you have two of them no less.”

“I’ll move in with him, then,” Dick suddenly said. Jason looked over at Dick a little incredulously. Although he wouldn’t say it out loud, he rather liked the idea. He wasn’t sure how, exactly, he felt about Dick. He’d been much too busy either training, or busting criminals to think about much else, let alone…relationships.

“There’s still the matter of Blüdhaven, and your job there,” Bruce pointed out.

“It’s only a thirty minute drive, it’s not a big deal. And we still have those zeta tubes in the batcave right? Couldn’t we set one up in my apartment building? I mean, I do kinda own the whole thing, y’know,” Dick answered. Bruce smirked a bit; Dick had given a lot of thought to this it seemed. Either that, or he was only just thinking of all of this now.

“I would be happy to drop by two or three times a week to aid you, sirs,” Alfred offered. Bruce nodded in agreement.

“Kaden and Keiran are family, we’re happy to help. Which is why I insist you at least let me buy you a place here in Gotham.” Jason frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. His pride wouldn’t allow him to accept so much help, but his common sense told him he would need it. So he debated all these ideas, simultaneously in his head, silently. His independence was important to him, so he wanted to maintain that. But he could still be independent and accept help, right?

Heaving a sigh, Jason raked his hands through his hair and answered “Alright, fine, fine. Yes to all of it. I suppose there’s nothing wrong with accepting a little help,” he answered, grumbling that last part out. Dick snickered and jabbed him in the side with his elbow.

“I’m sorry, what was that Jaybird? Did you just swallow your pride, and--” Dick began, teasing him.

“Bite me, you ass,” Jason snapped back, but with a teasing tone.

“Alright you two,” Bruce mused, lips tugging into a smirk. Jason seemed adamant about keeping the twins, for which he was actually rather proud. Seeing his adoptive son, step up and take responsibility for his own children…well, he couldn’t be prouder. But he was still a littler nervous, because he wondered if the two of them could handle it.

“You both realize, if you decide to...continue your relationship, the twins could complicate things?” Bruce asked. Dick and Jason exchanged glances; they hadn’t exactly talked about a relationship. Dick seemed more interested in having one with Jason, than Jason did with Dick. Jason wasn’t opposed to giving it a whirl either.

“We’ll figure it out,” Jason answered with a shrug.

“Very good sirs, now in the meantime, I suggest we go shopping. I’d wager you’re ill prepared to care for a child,” Alfred said casually. “And you’ll also need furniture for your new apartment.” Alfred turned to leave and gestured for the two of them to follow him, and they did.

“There’s one more matter to attend to,” Bruce said evenly. The two of them turned back to Bruce. “There’s the matter of your life, Jason. You’re still dead, but I think we can fix that.”


	6. "Resurrection"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Jason--”
> 
> “I know, I know. I’ll be on my best behavior,” Jason replied, rolling his eyes.
> 
> “You’re a grown man, I shouldn’t have to tell you that,” Bruce quipped back. Jason gasped and pretended to recoil in shock.
> 
> “Did you just crack a fucking joke?! Who the hell are you?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmm. Been trying something new with my writing as of late. :P Typically, I'd avoid fluff and focus on on what's important. But now though, I'm thinking fluff might make a story all the more interesting. And as a result, _this_ chapter came into existence. Jason coming back to life, legally, is pretty important, but the fluff surrounding it seemed less so. And yet, I had a ball writing this chapter. x)

They left Kaden and Keiran in the care of their Uncle Tim back at the manor while Alfred took them out shopping. The first few hours of their day were spent shopping around for apartments. Alfred insisted that they should find the ‘right place’ to raise the twins, and Jason wasn’t one to argue with Alfred. They settled on a rather nice place in West Village in Uptown Gotham. Bruce had suggested it and so they checked it out, and approved.

From there, they went about shopping for what Alfred said were ‘essentials’ for infants; diapers, toys, bottles, food, clothes, more toys, and a few other things. Dick, being the lovable dork that he was, bought the twins a whole bunch of superhero t-shirts, from Batman to Kid flash. Afterward, they went about buying some furniture for their new apartment and had the movers deliver it all. Within a matter of a few hours, their new apartment began looking like home. Of course they each bought a few things of their own to add a little character to the place.

After all the shopping was done and almost their whole day had been spent, Bruce invited them back to the manor for dinner. And so back to the manor they went. Alfred went into the kitchen to begin cooking dinner, and Jason was all too happy to join him. Back before he died, he’d spend a lot of time working in the kitchen with Alfred. He’d discovered that he actually enjoyed cooking, and over time, he became really good at it. It was one of the few things he’d kept with him even after he died and came back to life. After his training with the All-Caste came to an end and he traveled the globe with Talia, he kept working on his cooking.

Jason hummed a tune to himself while he worked in tandem with Alfred in the kitchen to cook dinner. They were cooking steak, broccoli, and baked potatoes, with a side of stuffed mushrooms, and fresh, oven baked bread.

“Master Jason, would you hand me the--” Alfred called without turning from his work at the stove.

“Seasoning salt right here,” Jason called, handing the seasoning salt to Alfred as he cut open the baked potatoes and filled each with a dollop of garlic butter. With a few finishing touches, dinner was finished and Jason helped Alfred set it all at the kitchen table.

“Have a seat, Master Jason. I shall call the others,” Alfred said evenly. The butler made his way into the living room where everyone was gathered; Bruce and Damian were silently reading on the couch while Dick and Tim were both on the floor, playing with Ace, and the twins. “Dinner is served,” Alfred said with a slight bow of his head. Everyone looked up toward Alfred before they got up to go to the kitchen. Dick and Tim picked the twins up, much to Ace’s disappointment, and brought them to the kitchen. There, they placed the twins in high chairs, side by side.

“Wow, this looks really good,” Tim complimented. He looked up at Jason curiously, but Jason answered before he could ask the question.

“Yeah, Alfred and I cooked. Don’t look so surprised; I have a few talents that extend beyond pummeling the crap out of scum bags,” Jason answered, flashing the teen a grin.

“Tt, if I get food poisoning--” Damian began, but Jason cut him off.

“Animals don’t belong at the table,” Jason quipped. Damian grabbed up his knife and raised it to throw at Jason, but Bruce grabbed his wrist and forced it back down to the table.

“We don’t throw knives at the dinner table,” Bruce said evenly.

“This is the most messed up dinner table I’ve ever sat at,” Tim quipped shaking his head. Dick snickered to himself. Jason flipped Damian off, but quickly retracted the gesture after a glare from Alfred. Jason and Dick each turned to a twin beside them, Keiran beside Jason and Kaden beside Dick, and continued to feed them.

Keiran’s little arms flailed, his hands smacking his tray happily as Jason fed him some mashed potatoes. Kaden let out a shrill giggle as Dick played ‘airplane’ with his food. Suddenly, a glob of potato flew across the table and smacked Dick in the face. Dick flinched and wiped it off, looking over in the direction it came from. Jason raised his hands defensively while Keiran giggled wildly, swinging the spoon around.

“I didn’t teach him that, I swear,” Jason explained with barely contained laughter. “He grabbed at the spoon, so I let him have it. I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Oh yeah, sure, Jay,” Dick replied with a slight smirk. Bruce chuckled in amusement and Tim snickered from his place at the table. Even Alfred seemed mildly amused.

“So Bruce,” Jason said, drawing the man’s attention. Jason fed Keiran another spoonful of potatoes, then cut off a piece of his own steak and ate it. “You mentioned something about ‘bringing me back to life’. What exactly is that going to entail?” Bruce finished a piece of steak, then set his fork and knife down and cleared his throat.

“Well, it’s a two fold plan; one out of necessity, and another out of expectation,” Bruce began. Jason frowned at the explanation, but held his tongue. He’d give the man a chance to explain his (probably) bad idea, before he’d say anything. “We’ll need to concoct a cover story, to explain where you’ve been all this time, and why we thought you were dead.”

“Well, we were in the Middle East, so I’m gonna venture a guess and say kidnapping, body replacement so no one would be any the wiser, and amnesia,” Jason answered, raising a finger for each point of the back story. Bruce smirked slightly, but gave a nod in the affirmative.

“Bruce Wayne has plenty of enemies in Bialya. It wouldn’t be that outlandish. Bialya still has a hand in the slave trade besides,” Bruce explained. Jason nodded in response, munching away on a stuffed mushroom.

“And I’m guessing the second part has something to do with assuaging the press, right?” Tim piped in. Damian snorted and rolled his eyes.

“The press. Is there a more sub-human breed of homo sapiens than that?” Jason snorted with held back laughter.

“A little more wordy than I’d’ve put it,” Jason replied. Bruce ignored the comments made by Damian and Jason and continued to explain his plan, unperturbed.

“The second part, as I mentioned, will be expected. But it will also alleviate pressure from the press,” Bruce started, He enlaced his fingers together and closed his eyes for a few moments.  When he opened them again, he said “we’re going to throw a Gala to celebrate both your ‘resurrection’, and to welcome to twins to the family.” Jason groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose and even Damian seemed to loathe the idea, if the disgusted look on his face was anything to judge by. Dick seemed to like the idea, and Tim seemed passive.

“Really Bruce? A gala? Come on!” Jason moaned. Bruce shook his head.

“It will be expected. Gotham’s elite--”

“Are worse than a pit vipers,” Jason quipped, earning a look from Bruce. Jason leaned back in his chair nonchalantly, and waved his hand in conformation for Bruce to continue. “Gotham’s Elite will expect Bruce Wayne to throw a celebration in honor of his adoptive son’s triumphant return.”

Jason faked cried and pretended to wipe a tear from his eye.

“Wow, that was beautiful Bruce,” Jason said with a fake whimper. He yelped in pain when Dick kicked his ankle under the table. Jason frowned at him, but Dick raised his hands defensively. Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned in annoyance.

“Look, if you want the press to lay off of you, then this is what you’ll have to endure. Unless you’d prefer to have the paparazzi hounding you relentlessly,” Bruce answered, arching an eyebrow. Jason groaned and massaged his temples, feeling a headache building behind his eyes. He’d always hated Bruce’s galas.

“Fine, fine. I get the point. When’re we going to do this crap? The sooner the better,” Jason answered with a dismissive hand wave.

“Tomorrow,” Bruce replied as everyone continued to eat their meals. “Tomorrow, you and I will drive down to the GCPD and we’ll have your identity confirmed and your status changed.”

“Great. Can’t wait.”

* * *

Everyone had gathered in the kitchen early the next morning, prepared for what they day had in store for them. Alfred, with Jason’s help, cooked everyone’s favorite pancakes and provided them all with a selection of different syrups. Bruce was the last to come down for breakfast. He’d come down fully dressed in a black dress jacket, pants, and a white button up shirt underneath.

Dick and Jason looked up from feeding Keiran and Kaden to look the man over.

“That’s a little fancy for a trip to the GCPD isn’t it?” Dick asked, arching an eyebrow. Bruce cleared his throat and sat at the table, taking the coffee cup offered by Alfred and giving it a sip.

“We’ll finish breakfast first, and then go down to the GCPD,” Bruce said evenly.

“Straight down to business then. Great. The sooner the better. I’d like to go back to living my life as soon as possible. Raising my kids by day, and breaking bones at night,” Jason said evenly, feeding Keiran another spoonful of oatmeal. From then on, breakfast was eaten in relative silence, save for a few bits of banter here or there. And of course some babbling from the twins.

“Alright, I suppose we should get going,” Bruce said evenly, rising from his chair. Jason did likewise, kissing each of his sons on the top of his head. As he followed Bruce out, he paused in place when he heard the infants speak their first words.

“Dada!” the both called after him, their little hands reaching out toward him. Jason spun around on the spot, looking shocked. And then his eyes fell on Dick and Tim, who looked so smug..

“We taught them that last night,” Dick said smoothly. Jason smiled at the twins and made his way back over to them, giving them each another kiss on the head.

“Dada!”

“Jason.” Jason turned when Bruce placed a hand on his shoulder, and then followed him out of the manor. Bruce opted to take a black 2005 BMW 645ci. It was less flashy than his other cars and would attract less attention. Off they went, to bring Jason back from the dead.

The drive was mostly silent; neither Jason or Bruce spoke much at all to each other. It was only when the GCPD game into view that Bruce broke the silence.

“So Jason, are we clear on your story?” Bruce asked. Jason glanced over at Bruce and snorted, waving his hand dismissively.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ve got it. Bullock will press me for information. I’ve got a sob story all worked out. The guy has always been a bag of dicks though,” Jason replied with a smug smirk. Bruce pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Jason--”

“I know, I know. I’ll be on my best behavior,” Jason replied, rolling his eyes.

“You’re a grown man, I shouldn’t have to tell you that,” Bruce quipped back. Jason gasped and pretended to recoil in shock.

“Did you just crack a fucking joke?! Who the hell are you?!” Bruce snorted in amusement, taking a moment to compose himself and then glare at Jason. “And just like that, he’s back.”

Bruce pulled around the back of the building and parked in the staff parking lot. He’d called ahead to Gordon and had made special arrangements to stay out of the public eye while they dealt with this. The presses would be running the story by the end of the day, regardless. It was just a precaution, truth be told. Jason had been “dead” for five years and he’d grown up quite a bit since then. It was doubtful that anyone would recognize him, but Bruce/Batman had always preferred to err on the side of caution.

“Bruce. Jason,” Gordon acknowledged, waiting for them by the back door, smoking a cigarette.

“Commissioner Gordon. Thank you for agreeing to meet with us on such short notice,” Bruce said with a smile, holding out his hand. Gordon pushed his glasses up his nose and put out his cigarette. He shook Bruce’s hand, flashing a friendly smile back.

“It was no problem, Mister Wayne. After everything you and your family have done for Gotham, it was the least I could do,” Gordon replied. He turned his attention onto Jason then, and eyed the young man from head to toe, with curiosity. “So, you’re Jason Peter Todd? You’ve grown quite a lot,” Gordon said. Jason smirked a little and shrugged his shoulders.

“Yeah. A lot of shit can happen in six years,” he replied, earning a glare from Bruce. Jason still didn’t particularly care for cops. Gordon though, was the exception. He respected, even liked, Commissioner Gordon. He was probably one of the few cops in Gotham that wasn’t rotten.

“I see somethings don’t change,” Gordon replied with a snort of amusement, smirk tugging at his lips. He patted Jason on the shoulder and opened the back door. “Either way, it’s good to see you again, kid. And alive, no less. After you,” he added. The three of them made their way inside, with Gordon taking up the rear. As the trio moved inside, past the various desks and offices, no one so much as batted an eye. As expected, nobody seemed to recognize Jason, for which he was glad. They made their way into Commissioner Gordon’s office, where Bullock was awaiting them.

They started with taking his finger prints. Bruce had previously had them erased from the system shortly after he’d become Robin. He’d done the same for Dick, Tim, and Damian as well. For this however, he’d had them restored so they’d have something to run these new finger prints against. After all was said and done, all finger print records would once again return to the abyss.

“Finger prints are a match. Seems you really _are_ Jason Todd,” Gordon said evenly, finishing the analysis on his computer.

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Jason joked as he got down to filling out some paperwork. Once it was done, Gordon had Bullock take it out to have it filed. When he returned, they got to business.

“Alright, tell us your story. Start from the beginning. What happened to bein’ dead?” Bullock asked, pulling out a pencil and a notepad.

“I got better,” Jason said sarcastically, leaning back in his chair. Bullock shot the young man a glare and even Bruce looked perturbed.

“Jason--”

“Fine, fine. Just easing the tension. Having a little fun, y’know?” Jason answered, raising his hands defensively. Nobody else seemed amused, so he cleared his throat and got down to it. He’d had some time to formulate more of a story in the car, rehearsing it mentally to himself. He was pretty good at lying; it was a useful skill on the streets, and he’d all but mastered the art of it, courtesy of Bruce.

“Well, let’s see. I was kidnapped by some dirt bags over in Qurac. Kinda lost my memory so I didn’t remember who I was. I remember escaping, then sort of bouncing around from place to place as I tried to figure shit out,” Jason explained, weaving his story with kernels of truth. “I didn’t have much of a memory, but I did remember Gotham for some reason. Did some odd jobs all over to raise money for a flight to Gotham. Figured if I got back to Gotham, my memory would come back--”

“I found Jason wandering around in Qurac, while I was on a business trip. He had no memory of who he was, or who I was. I took him home and we’ve been working through things. His memory only came back recently,” Bruce filled in. Jason simply nodded in response.

“That’s it? That’s not very helpful, kid. You gotta have more,” Bullock pressed. Jason felt a twinge of annoyance in the back of his mind, but he schooled his expression and suppressed it. He never liked Bullock; the man had always been a jackass.

“Yeah, well, that’s all I’ve got. Whatever I went through with those kidnappers, must’ve been pretty hellish. All I’ve got is bits and pieces. I guess a part of me doesn’t want to remember,” Jason replied, adding a dash of emotion for added effect. Acting was another skill in his repertoire.

“You’re tellin’ me that you remember nothin’ about your time with the kidnappers, but remember everything that happened after you ‘escaped’?” Bullock pressed harder. Jason shot him a glare, but kept his temper under wraps.

“Yeah, that’s what I’m telling you. And no amount of ‘Bad Cop’ is gonna make me remember,” Jason snapped.

“Alright, alright, everyone calm down,” Gordon said, rising from his desk. He turned to Bruce and pointed at the man accusingly.

“You said you found him wandering around in Qurac. You didn’t think to report this sooner?” Gordon asked, looking a bit perturbed.

“My son was missing for six years. I thought he was dead. When I found him wandering the streets of Qurac with no memory of who he was, I just wanted to bring him home and help him,” Bruce explained, also putting on quite the show. He faked his throat tightening, faked getting choked up, and all in all, Jason thought it was a 5 star performance. “He was suffering from amnesia. I didn’t want to subject him to the media frenzy that would __surely__  follow.” Bruce leaned against the desk a bit, and gestured to a picture of Barbara that he had on his desk. “You have a daughter, Commissioner. Wouldn’t you do whatever you could to protect her?”

“Yes…yes, I suppose I would,” Gordon replied, his stern demeanor relaxing a bit as he glanced at the picture of his daughter. He looked up at Bullock and gestured toward the door. “I think we’re done here, Bullock. I don’t think we’re going to get anything else.”

“But Commissioner, we ain’t got shit here,” Bullock replied.

“If the boy doesn’t remember, he doesn’t remember. Nothing we can do about that now,” Gordon replied. Bullock growled a bit but left the office as instructed. Gordon rose from his chair and held his hand out to Bruce. Bruce shook his hand and flashed a smile.

“Thank you Commissioner.”

“Not a problem, Mister Wayne."

“Thank you again, Commissioner.” Bruce replied. He placed an arm around Jason’s shoulder and led him out of the office. They waited until they were back outside, and in the car, before Jason snorted with barely contained laughter.

“That act you put on in there was an Oscar worthy performance,” Jason said. Bruce smirked a little as he started the car and pulled out of the parking lot.

“Your story of what happened was pretty impressive as well. The legal process is going to be quite a hassle though. Even with my money, it will take a week or two to get things straightened out,” Bruce answered. Jason grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

“What can I say? It’s a gift,” he replied, leaning back in his seat. “So, what next, _dad?_ ” Jason asked with a teasing tone. Bruce smiled slightly; he’d never admit it out loud, but he rather liked that. _Dad…_

“Now, we prepare for the Gala. Everyone is going to expect Bruce Wayne to celebrate his adoptive son’s return,” Bruce answered. Jason nodded in reply.

“Right. Jumping into the viper pit then,” Jason replied. “Gotta say, I think I’d rather wade through a drug den, than a bunch of pretentious, elitest--”

“I get the point, Jason.”


	7. Gala

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Jaybird!” came Roy’s voice. Jason turned toward its source and spotted Roy, dressed in a similar fashion as himself, with little Lian beside him, holding her father’s hand.
> 
> “Daddy, look! It’s a baby!” Lian chirped. Roy glanced down at his daughter and chuckled in amusement.
> 
> “Yes sweetheart, it’s a baby,” he replied, stopping before Dick and Jason. “Jaybird, it’s good to see you again!” Roy said cheerily, giving the man a one-armed hug. Jason returned the gesture. “And you too, Dickie,” he added, hugging Dick.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :3

Bruce and Jason arrived back at the manor a little over an hour later. From there, Bruce immediately began getting things ready for the Gala, which they were going to have tonight; as Jason had said, the sooner the better. Jason, for his part, immediately made his way through the manor to find his boys playing with Dick, Tim, and Ace in the living room.

“Kaden, Keiran, daddy’s home!” Jason called. The twins looked up to their father and gave shrill laughs as the man joined them on the floor and kissed each of them on the head. Ace pounced on him and knocked him onto the floor as soon as he sat down. Jason yelped in surprise as the dog licked his face, tail wagging excitedly, then raced back toward the children, giving little yips and barks at them.

“Wow, he really liked playing with the kids, huh?” Jason asked, wiping his face and sitting back up. Dick snickered in amusement as he pushed himself back up onto his feet.

“Oh yeah, he’s like a pig in the mud right now,” Dick replied. Ace finally settled down though when Alfred called him from the kitchen. He raced into the kitchen at his name.

“Must be food time,” Tim said with a laugh. “It’s the only time he moves so fast!”

“So Jay, do you have a tux for the Gala tonight?” Dick asked, sitting down on the couch with little Kaden in his arms. Jason looked up from playing with blocks with Keiran.

“Yeah, of course I’ve got a tux. You know how many undercover missions I’ve had to do with the Outlaws?” Jason replied. He set the blocks up again and Keiran knocked them over with a shrill giggle, clapping his little hands together.

“The preparations are underway for tonight’s Gala,” Bruce said smoothly as he made his way into the living room. He sat in the arm chair, glancing around the room to Damian in the arm chair across the room, reading a book; to Dick sitting on the couch playing patty cake with Kaden; and to Tim and Jason playing with Keiran on the floor. “There’s one last thing we need to take care of, however. Regarding Kaden and Keiran.

“What’s that?” Dick asked, glancing over at Bruce while Kaden happily played with his hand, tugging on his fingers.

“The boys’ birthday. We can’t exactly track Talia down whenever we need to. If she doesn’t want to be found, she won’t be found,” Bruce replied.

“Right. And I doubt she had the twins in a hospital. She wouldn’t want to leave a paper trail,” Jason put in.

“Mother would have precariously cover her tracks to ensure no trace of the pregnancy of birth could be discovered,” Damian chimed in without looking up from his book.

“So in other words, we’ll need to pick a date for their birthday,” Dick said.

“Yes. Especially if you plan to register them for school when they’re older,” Bruce added. Jason snorted.

“Right. More paperwork,” Jason muttered, rolling his eyes. He gave it some thought though, factoring in what he knew of child development, and guesstimated how old the twins were, and then came to a decision. “February 10th should do it,” Jason replied. Bruce gave a nod in response.

“Very well. I’ll get the paperwork started. In the meantime, you should get ready for the Gala.”

“Joy.”

* * *

The day had come to an end and night was upon them, and with it, the Gala had just begun. Jason had been a bit…conflicted about using his old bedroom. Memories flooded his mind when he opened the door; everything had been left exactly the way it had been before he left for Qurac with Bruce. He took a few moments to process the plethora of emotions and memories that bombarded him, before getting dressed.

Jason had just finished getting all dressed up for the Gala, though he wasn’t a big fan of “monkey suits”, as he called them. As far as dress clothing went, his was on the casual side; an open black suit jacket, with black dress pants and shoes, and a white button up shirt. Jason preferred comfort over everything else, and since this wasn’t an undercover mission, he didn’t particularly care.

He made his way out of his old bedroom and down the hallway toward Dick’s room. He stopped in front of the door and gave a knock. He heard the twins babbling just beyond the door. Moments later, it opened up and Dick stood there in a black tuxedo and a twin in each arm. Each of the twins wore little white button up shirts, with black bow ties actually sewn onto them, black dress pants, and little black tuxedo jackets.

“Jason, hey. Just finished dressing the twins,” Dick said with a smile, passing Keiran off to him. He took a moment to look Jason over and caught himself staring. Jason caught him too, it seemed.

“See something you like?” he teased with a grin on his face. Dick blushed a little bit, and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“You look good, Jay,” he replied with a soft smile. Jason chuckled in amusement and nodded down the hallway.

“C’mon, let’s get going. Everyone is waiting on us,” he replied. Dick smiled and followed the man down the hall. Halfway, and they were joined by Tim, followed lastly by Damian. Bruce was waiting on them down stairs, in the main living room. Alfred was already in the Great Hall, serving guests alongside the other waiters who’d been hired for the event.

“Boys,” Bruce acknowledged with a nod of his head. The four of them stopped before Bruce, who helped Tim adjust his tie a bit. He gestured toward the door to the Great Hall. “Facial recognition go,” Bruce commanded. He’d had the Batcomputer hooked up to cameras hidden throughout the manor to run facial recognition for events like this. One could never be too careful.

_“Facial Recognition Algorithm Activated.”_

“Seems a little excessive, but sure,” Jason replied with a shrug of his shoulders.

_“Jason Todd recognized. Formerly: Robin. Currently: Red Hood. Previously deceased. Got better. Access High”_

Jason rolled his eyes as the system spoke. “Cute. Very cute.”

“But accurate,” Dick replied.

_“Dick Grayson recognized. Formerly: Robin. Currently: Nightwing. Access High.”_

“Have you added the twins to the system?” Tim asked.

_“Timothy Jackson Drake recognized. Formerly: Robin. Currently: Red Robin, Teen Titans. Access High. Kaden Todd recognized. Keiran Todd recognized.”_

“Does that answer your question, Drake?” Damian asked, with a derisive snort.

_“Damian Wayne recognized. Currently: Robin, Young Justice. Access High.”_

“Alright, lets get out there,” Bruce said evenly, throwing open the doors. The room was filled with a cacophony of voices as a hundred different conversations took place at once. The room was packed with nearly a hundred people, mostly Gotham’s Elite, but also a few invitees as well. Dick had invited and Zatanna for this occasion, and Bruce took it upon himself to invite Jim Gordon, Barbara, Lois and Clark. Jason had made sure that Roy and Lian received an invite.

No sooner had they gotten through the door, the paparazzi began to flood them. Tim and Damian snuck on through but Bruce and Dick stuck by Jason. Bruce wrapped an arm around Jason’s shoulders, and Jason put on a fake smile; he would’ve preferred to shoot them all.

“Mister Todd, what is it like, returning home?”

“Mister Wayne, how do you feel about your son’s sudden return home?”

“Can you tell us anything about what happened?”

“Why are you returning just now?”

“Whose children are those?”

Jason’s smile started to fade and he started to get annoyed when the twins started to fuss. Dick had to intervene to prevent Jason from throwing a punch at a cameraman who pushed a camera in Kaden’s face. Fortunately, Bruce stepped in and moved in front of them, waving his hands to calm the press down.

“All your questions will be answered in due time. For the moment, I’m sure this will suffice,” Bruce began, and so he gave a brief explanation of events, and then turned back to Jason and Dick, gesturing toward the twins. “And these two are the second part of tonight’s Gala. A celebration of my grandchildren, Keiran and Kaden Todd.” The cameras flashed even more and a frenzy of questions barraged him, but Bruce made is clear that they were done for now, steering both Dick and Jason through the crowds.

“Ugh, I fucking hate reporters,” Jason growled to himself. Dick smiled and patted the man’s shoulder.

“I know the feeling,” Dick replied.

“Jaybird!” came Roy’s voice. Jason turned toward its source and spotted Roy, dressed in a similar fashion as himself, with little Lian beside him, holding her father’s hand.

“Daddy, look! It’s a baby!” Lian chirped. Roy glanced down at his daughter and chuckled in amusement.

“Yes sweetheart, it’s a baby,” he replied, stopping before Dick and Jason. “Jaybird, it’s good to see you again!” Roy said cheerily, giving the man a one-armed hug. Jason returned the gesture. “And you too, Dickie,” he added, hugging Dick. “Who’re these two adorable little tykes?”

“This is Kaden,” Dick said.

“And this one is Keiran. They’re twins,” Jason finished. Roy played peekaboo with the two of them and they let out shrill giggles, bouncing happily in Jason and Dick’s arms. “They’re my sons,” Jason added, to which Roy did a double-take.

“Come again?” he asked.

“Kaden and Keiran are my--”

“Oh my god!”

“They’re so adorable!” Jason, Dick, and Roy looked in the direction of the voices, and over came Barbara and Zatanna. Barbara wore a black dress and Zatanna was garbed in her usual white shirt with a black bolo tie with a black jacket and a black skirt.

“What’re their names? Zatanna asked, ticking little Keiran.

“Kaden and Keiran,” Dick replied with a smile, handing Kaden over to Barbara.

“Aw, they look just like--” Barbara began, when realization donned on her “Jason!” Jason grinned from ear to ear and gave a nod.

“You sly dog!” Roy said with a grin, playfully punching Jason’s arm. “Whose the mother?” Jason and Dick exchanged a look, unsure if now was a good time to reveal that particular piece of information. After a few moment’s hesitation, Jason shrugged.

“Talia al Ghul.”

“What?!” Roy, Zatanna, and Barbara all blurted out in unison.

“It’s a long story, so, don’t bother,” Jason replied with a nervous laugh. Zatanna continued to amuse Keiran with simple tricks; Keiran was absolutely thrilled with all of them.

“Regardless, they’re both so adorable! Just like their daddy,” she said. They were soon joined by Lois, Clark, and their seven-year-old son, Jon.

“Hey,” Clark called with a wave, Lois’ arm linked with his, and little Jon walking beside his mother with his hand in hers.

“Clark!” Dick exclaimed, hugging the man. “It’s good to see you again! Its been a while! And Lois, how’re you doing?”

“Oh, I’m going just great,” she replied with a smile. “Though life gets a bit challenging when you’re raising a half Kryptonian child,” she joked in a low voice. Everyone gave a chuckle of amusement in response.

“I overheard your conversation. Super-hearing. So these are your boys, Jason?” Clark asked as Barbara and Zatanna brought them over. “Congratulations. On being a father, I mean. And--”

“Not being dead?” Jason put in with a smirk, arching an eyebrow. Clark laughed.

“Yes. That too.” Their attention was drawn to Bruce as the man tapped a crystal glass with a fork. The whole room fell silent and turned their attention onto their host. Bruce gestured for Jason to come up. Jason frowned a bit, giving a nod to his friends before making his way over and donning a fake smile. Bruce wrapped an arm around his shoulders and raised the glass.

“I’d like to give a toast! To my son Jason, for his safe return home, after all these years!” Bruce declared. The room erupted into a round of applause with a few whistles mixed in, and the sounds of ringing crystal glasses. “And secondly,” he called out over the crowd, prompting them to grow quiet once more. He looked to where Jason had been, and gestured for Barbara and Zatanna to bring the twins over. As they approached, Barbara handed Keiran to Bruce, and Kaden to Jason. The crowd gave small laughs of amusement, as well as some ‘awwws’ when Keiran gave a shrill giggle, and Kaden hugged his father. “I’d like to celebrate a couple of new additions to the Wayne family; Keiran and Kaden Todd!” Another round of applause burst from the crowd.

“Are we done yet?” Jason asked in a low tone, leaning toward Bruce.

“Almost. Just grin and bear it for a little while longer,” Bruce whispered back as the paparazzi took pictures. After the picture taking came to an end, the two of them were approached by Vicky Vale, a red-haired woman garbed in a red dress. “This is the last part, Jason. I promise. People are gonna want to hear the story you relayed to the cops. I arranged for someone we knew to do the interview.”

“Right. Gotham’s own Lois Lane,” Jason joked. Vicky approached the two men and Bruce led both Jason and Vicky out of the Main Hall and into one of the lesser used sitting rooms.

“Jason Peter Todd,” Vicky said smoothly, looking the young man over with interest. “You were quite the success story; street rat, jacking cars, stealing, and selling drugs to survive on the streets. Then along comes Bruce Wayne, and you become a Straight A honor student, top of your class.”

“Yeah, that was me. The bookworm, the nerd, and probably the only kid who actually __liked__  school,” Jason replied with a laugh. Vicky laughed as well, and then the three of them took seats around a small coffee table. Vicky produced a notepad and a pencil and sat on a chair across from the two of them.

“Gotham was saddened to hear of your death, Jason. But I’m glad we’re here now to celebrate your return instead,” Vicky started with. Jason gave a nod of his head; he may have been out of practice for the last six years or so, but he still knew how to play the game. “Why don’t you tell me a bit about that?”

* * *

The night wore on and as it did, the festivities eventually died down until everyone had left. Roy left first when Lian started to nod off, then Lois and Clark when Jon started to get sleepy. Jim left after he got a call about a standard B&E. Nothing that the GCPD couldn’t handle. Barbara insisted she get back to Metropolis, and Zatanna, back to Nevada for a show she had coming up the next night. Damian had already gone down to the cave to prepare for patrol that night, and Tim actually went to bed…with Dick’s insistence, of course. He’d been working really hard on a few different cases at once, and between that and school, Dick was sure the teen had to be exhausted.

“Well, thank god that’s over,” Jason murmured, patting Keiran’s back as the infant snored softly. Dick made his way over to Jason with a sleeping Kaden in his arms.

“Aw, it wasn’t that bad, Jaybird,” Dick replied. Jason snorted.

“No, it was awful,” Jason replied. Bruce chuckled in amusement and patted each of them on the shoulder.

“Well, on the bright side, the press will be a lot less aggressive now,” he said.

“Yeah, thanks for that, I guess,” Jason replied, turning and making for the door. Dick sighed and rolled his eyes; both he and Bruce were emotionally constipated.

“Right then. Well, we should get back to the apartment and put these little guys down for bed,” Dick replied, giving Bruce a one-armed hug. He followed Jason out to the car, and off they went, headed for their new home.

Surprisingly, the twins slept all the way home, and all the way up the stairs to the apartment, save for a bit of fussing when they woke, only briefly, just to fall back to sleep again. Jason carefully opened the door with his free hand, careful not to shake the baby too much, then nudged the door open with his shoulder and made his way inside. He kicked his shoes off at the door, then gave a quick glance around the apartment. He hadn’t had a real chance to look around after the movers set everything, but it’d have to wait. He made his way to the twins’ bedroom, with Dick behind him, and they set the infants down in their cribs without incident.

“Day two. I wonder how long we can last,” Dick said aloud, turning on the baby monitor. Jason padded out of the bedroom with Dick behind him, and made for their shared bedroom.

“Counting the days already, hmm? Trying to see how long it takes before we both go nuts?” Jason asked in a teasing tone. Dick chuckled a bit as he followed Jason into their bedroom.

“That’s one way to put it, I guess,” he replied, watching with heated eyes as Jason stripped down to all but a pair of black boxer-briefs. Jason glanced over his shoulder at the man and flashed a smug grin.

“See something you like, Dickie?” he teased. Dick blushed a little but didn’t bother to hide the fact that he was enjoying the view as he stripped out of his own tux. He watched as Jason sat at the edge of the bed and then sauntered over, leaning down to press his lips against Jason’s.

“You’ve got a bit mouth, Jay--” Dick began, interrupted by Jason.

“So how ‘bout I use it,” he purred. Dick gave low, suggestive laugh as he pushed Jason back onto the bed.

“You read my mind,” he replied, kissing Jason and slipping his tongue into the younger man’s mouth. Jason moaned slightly into the kiss, having wanted to do that all damn day. It was a bit confusing for all of three seconds, and only because they hadn’t yet decided what they were going to be to each other. But it seemed they were both thinking the same thing; to pick up where they left off, six years ago. Alas, before things could progress further, their love making was interrupted by the sound of crying from the baby monitor. Dick and Jason pulled apart, and Jason sighed, raking a hand through his hair.

“And so it begins,” he said with a laugh.


	8. Parenthood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taking care of the twins made it somewhat more difficult to go out and do their vigilante work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woooo, I've been on a bit of a writing binge lately. Usually only crank out 1 chapter a day, but I've been managing two. Hell yeah, lol. xD

A few months passed and eventually, things fell into a sort of rhythm. Some nights were easier than others. Most nights, the twins seemed to sleep throughout the night. Other nights, either one, or both, would would up in the middle of the night and start crying. It was usually just a messy diaper, or that they were just looking for attention or comfort, but they’d also begun teething, so there was that too.

Taking care of the twins made it somewhat more difficult to go out and do their vigilante work. Mostly, it was due to having difficulty finding baby sitters. They ended up trading off nights going on patrol. One night, Dick would go out as Nightwing, and then the next, Jason would go out as The Red Hood. On rare nights, when they were both needed, they managed to get Alfred, Tim, or Roy to keep an eye on the babies.

The Red Hood was a bit easier to manage, since he had a black smart phone that held all of his underworld contacts. Jason could easily just manage things with a phone call, or do his “work” during the day. Things seemed to be working well, and eventually, they just fell into a routine. However, the nature of Jason’s work sometimes meant he’d need to go out multiple nights in a row. As it turned out, managing a criminal organization was a bit of a hassle. That left Dick to look after them, sometimes by himself.

“The Red Hood ain’t gonna be a damn problem. He don’t know shit,” one of Red Hood’s turncoat lieutenants said to Black Mask. Unsurprisingly, he’d managed to get out of prison after having bought off a judge. Red Hood had been keeping a close eye on Roman Sionis, who was slowly rebuilding his old empire. Or trying to, at least. There were plenty of gangs and individual thugs who still remained loyal to Black Mask. Red Hood had a number of them in his line of sight. This one, however, came as a bit of a surprise. Either way, he was going down.

“Good. Let’s keep it that way,” Black Mask replied, lighting up a cigarette and giving it a few puffs. “Rebuildin’ this Empire ain’t gonna be easy, but it’ll get done. The Red Hood is nuts, but I’m ruthless.”

“Yes sir. Things are progressing nicely. You’ve got your own shadow empire building right inside the Hood’s,” the man replied. Black Mask gave a nod.

“Good. And when we’re ready, I’m gonna rip his god damn head off, and mount it on my wall. That fucker is going to pay for crossing me,” Black Mask answered, stomping out his cigarette.

“How cute. You think you’re even in the running,” Red Hood replied from the roof top above. Black Mask and the turncoat turned their attention onto Hood. The turncoat stared at him wide-eyes.

“R-Red Hood! B-b-but how’d you--”

“Save your breath. I’ve had you in my sights for a while,” Hood replied. Black Mask snorted and pointed to the Hood.

“You shouldn’t have showed your face here. I had grand plans for how I was gonna slowly kill you and rip you apart, piece-by-piece, but then you had to go and ruin it by showing up.”

“Aw, I’m hurt,” Hood replied sarcastically.

“Waste him,” Black Mask ordered. A dozen thugs armed with fully automatic weapons attacked him. Hood jumped down and threw several shurikens which stuck into the barrels of the a few of the guns, causing them to explode and injure their operators. Red Hood moved with athletic grace, taking down thug after thug before his men stormed the area and started taking down the traitors. During the chaos and the mass of people fighting, Hood lost track of Black Mask. The man seemed to have escaped in the chaos of it all.

He took his attention off of Black Mask for the time being and turned his attention back to the fight. As the fighting came to an end, Hood surveyed the area. One of his men came up to him to give him a report and he shot the man a glare.

“Red Hood sir,” the man began, fidgeting a little. “The traitors are taken care of. What do you want us to do with the survivors?” the man asked. Hood looked over over the area again and then turned back to the man.

“Tie ‘em up and leave ‘em for the GCPD. And tell them that they’re to give the cops everything the need, or I’ll make sure they won’t live to serve out their prison sentence,” Hood replied.

“Y-yes sir,” the man replied, leaving to relay the orders. Hood then turned his attention onto his traitorous lieutenant and made his way over to the man.

“Please, no!” The man begged, still tied up. Hood hauled him up onto his feet and then pulled out a grappling gun, firing a line to a roof top across the way. The man yelped as he was dragged into the air, then Hood dangled him over the edge of the building.

“I want names! Who else is working for Black Mask?!” Hood snarled.

“I don’t know, I swear!” The man begged. Hood’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re lying. You know something else! Talk!” Hood shouted.

“Please, I don’t--” the man begged, interrupted by his screams as Hood dropped him off of the edge of the building. Timing it fight right, Hood fired his grappling gun again and the line wrapped around the man’s leg, going taut and stopping his fall just inches from the ground. The man whimpered and begged as Hood pulled him up again.

“One last chance,” Hood growled.

“Okay, I’ll talk, I’ll talk!” And talk he did. Once he was satisfied that the man had told him everything he knew, he dropped down and threw him with the rest of the survivors.

“Alright, get the hell out of here!” he ordered his men. All of them hopped back into their vehicles and abandoned the area, just as the GCPD sirens sounded in the distance. Once they were out of sight, Hood gave an exasperated sigh and made his way back for his motorcycle, hopping on, and heading home.

Once he was back at the apartment building, he slipped in through the window of their apartment, pulling off the red mask, sighing in relief as cool air met sweat slick covered skin.

“Have fun?” Dick asked angrily from the arm chair in the living room. Jason looked toward the voice as he started removing his equipment and moving toward the closet where he and Dick kept their gear. They were going to have to figure out a better hiding place for this stuff when Kaden and Keiran got older, to prevent them from finding it. He began tucking the gear inside and heaved a sigh.

“How long have the kids been--”

“Asleep? Only for ten minutes. They both woke up crying. Messy diapers. I took care of it and got them back to bed,” Dick replied sharply. Jason nodded, but Dick wasn’t done. He got to his feet and approached the man. “Five nights in a row now. __Five__.” Jason felt a twinge of guilt at leaving Dick with the twins for five nights in a row. Everyone else had been too busy to look after them. Tim was all the way over in Jump City, Bruce and Damian were out on patrol every night this week, and with them out, Alfred needed to remain at the manor in case either of them needed patching.

“Look, Dick, I’m sorry, but my work as the Red Hood--”

“Jason, five damn nights in a row! Don’t you think I deserve a damn break?! Don’t you think _my work_ in Blüdhaven is important?” Dick asked, slashing his arm through the air angrily. “You have lieutenants! You’re telling me you can’t get them to handle things by themselves for a few nights?!” Jason snorted in reply and waved the man off, making his way into the kitchen.

“Oh don’t play victim, Dick. How many times have you pulled the same bullshit? ‘Oh sorry Jay, maybe tomorrow night! This lead is important!’” Jason mocked, throwing open the refrigerator and grabbing a beer.

“Oh grow up, Jason! My work is important too!” Dick snapped, following him into the kitchen and snatching the beer out of his hands, just before he could sip it.

“Oh fuck you! You go off to Blüdhaven to play gym instructor and I’m left here to look after the kids all damn day! And on top of it, you’re a damn slob! I’m always cleaning up after you!” Jason shouted, tuning his back on Dick. His anger rose to peak levels, and he knew he should’ve stopped, but he couldn’t stop what he said next. He spun around and glared at Dick. “No one asked you to stick around and play daddy with me,” Jason snarled, going for the low blow. He kicked himself mentally for that, even as the words fell out of his mouth. Dick looked like he’d been slapped in the face, flinching back noticeably.

“What’re you saying, Jason? That you don’t want me here?” Dick asked in a low tone, glaring at the man. Jason groaned and scrubbed his face with his hands, pacing the kitchen a bit. Their arguing was interrupted when the babies started to cry.

“Crap,” Jason murmured, making his way for the twins’ room, with Dick behind him. They hadn’t realized it right away, but their arguing had startled the babies. They each reached into a crib and cradled one of the twins in their arms, making shushing noises and rocking them back and forth to calm them down. Once they fell back to sleep, Dick and Jason put them back in their cribs and silently retreated from the room.

Jason sighed as he padded into their shared bedroom and dressed down for bed. He sat at the edge of the bed, watching as Dick stripped down too.

“Dick…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that,” Jason said softly. Dick pulled on a pair of blue dorm pants and sat beside Jason. “I…like having you here…and honestly? I-if you’d be interested…maybe we could…” Jason stammered a little, his face tinting pink. He was definitely not good with this emotional, sappy garbage like Dick was.

“Start dating?” Dick asked with a smile. Jason managed a smile and nodded. “Of course, Jaybird. And I’m sorry for nagging you like that. I was just--”

“Tired? Frustrated?” Jason asked, and Dick gave a chuckle of amusement, raking a hand through his hair.

“Yeah.And look, I get it Jay, your work is important, you keep the peace in Gotham. But you need to understand; I’m _exhausted!_ ” Jason raised his hands defensively.

“I know, I know. And I know you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t want to,” Jason answered, kissing the side of Dick’s head. He leaned his head against Dick’s and wrapped an arm around his shoulders and the two of them just sat there, like that, in silence for a time.

“We’re practically married now, you realize? Arguing over a baby, over work, housework.” Jason laughed too, because now that he realized it, it was kinda true.

“Well then, maybe I’ll buy you a nice gold ring and make you Mrs. Todd?” Jason teased. Dick snorted and playfully shoved the younger man away.

“Screw that. If anything, you should be Mrs. Grayson.” Jason let out a bark of laughter.

“You wish.” The two of them shared a laugh, and then a kiss, Dick melting his lips against Jason’s, tongue slipping into his mouth, deepening the kiss. Jason threaded his fingers through Dick’s hair, the older man moaning softly into his mouth as Dick shoved Jason back onto the bed, grinning down at him and Jason grinning up.

“Well, well, what do we have here? Grayson’s getting assertive. It’s kinda sexy,” Jason purred. Dick was about to speak when they heard more crying from the baby monitor.

“I love those boys, I really do, but--”

“They’re giving us blue balls,” Jason filled in. Dick burst into laughter and then kissed Jason again.

“To put it bluntly, yeah.”

“Maybe we can convince Alfred to look after him for a few days? Get some much needed R&R,” Jason suggested. Dick leaned down and pressed a tender kiss to Jason’s lips.

“Yeah. Sounds good. Just you and me.”


	9. Dating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> God, did you come out of a Chick Flick or something? You are just…so god damn sappy and corny,” Jason teased, earning another punch to his arm.
> 
> “Aw shut up Jaybird. I know there’s a romantic, deep down in there somewhere,” Dick replied, poking the man’s chest. Jason snorted and shook his head.
> 
> “Oh yeah, he’s in there alright. Waaaay down there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo boy. Apologies for the lack of update yesterday. 1. I was tired from staying up late the night before, and 2. I started writing this chapter and it exploded into this beast, over 4-4.5k words, lol. So I split it into two and have been working on refining the chapters. Might get a second chapter today, too, since the next one is already partially written.

Alfred arrived at the apartment bright and early the next morning. The sun had just begin to rise over the horizon, and the clock had only just struck 6AM. The butler looked around the apartment and tsked at the state of things.

“Still the untidy slob as ever, Master Dick,” Alfred said to himself with a slight hint of amusement. Jason was more like him, making sure the keep his living space clean, everything neat and tidy and in its place. Nonetheless, Alfred got to work cleaning the place up as he had promised. He’d agreed to visit the apartment once, maybe twice a week and help Jason and Dick lighten their load a bit. One child was quite a handful. Two was quite another matter. Add that on top of vigilante work and house keeping, and it was a full time job. Fortunately, Alfred didn’t mind lending a hand every now and again.

Alfred’s work was soon interrupted by the sounds of crying from the boys’ room. It was hardly surprising since the twins always seemed to rise with the sun. Alfred made his way into the twins’ room and picked them up, taking them into the kitchen and strapping them into their high chairs. He began preparing breakfast for everyone, moving back and forth across the kitchen with practiced ease. As if on schedule, Dick and Jason shuffled out of the room.

“G’morning Alfred,” Jason muttered, followed by a yawn as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

“Morning Alfred,” Dick chimed in, a bit more chipper than Jason. Jason shot Dick a glare.

“People aren’t meant to wake up so damn cheery, Dick. It goes against all the laws of nature,” Jason joked. Dick laughed in amusement as he and Jason sat down at the table.

“Good morning Master Dick. Master Jason,” Alfred said smoothly, sliding cups of coffee across the table to both of them. Next, he served them their breakfast; bacon, eggs, and toast with glasses of orange juice. Lastly, oatmeal for the twins. He fed them himself, which proved to be difficult when Kaden decided to use it as a projectile.

“Mmm, god it’s like heaven,” Jason murmured as he sipped his coffee. Dick chuckled beside him, eating his breakfast with gusto.

“Thanks Alfred. The twins have been a real handful lately,” Dick said to the old man. Alfred smirked slightly as he fed Keiran, then turned to Kaden.

“Yes indeed. Welcome to parenthood, Master Dick,” Alfred replied.

“Fun times,” Jason said sarcastically, earning a snicker of amusement from Dick. “What about you, Alfred? You’re welcome to join us for breakfast, y;know,” Jason said. Alfred waved his hand dismissively.

“Worry not, Master Jason. I have already eaten. You enjoy your meal,” Alfred replied, grimacing when Kaden hit him with a glob of oatmeal. “I’m preoccupied wearing your son’s, after all.” Jason and Dick laughed in amusement. The two of them ate in relative silence, save for a bit of banter here of there with Alfred. One the twins were fed, he got to cleaning up their trays, which were spattered with oatmeal. While Alfred did that, Jason played peekaboo with Keiran, covering his face and making a soft ‘boo’ sound. Every time he did, Keiran let out an infectious giggle and waved his little arms in the air ecstatically.

“Hey Alfred, I was wondering,” Dick began, sipping his coffee. Alfred turned his attention onto the acrobat as he finished up with the dishes. “Do you think you might take the twins for a day or two? So Jason and I can have some, uh…alone time?” Alfred was silent for a time as he considered the request. After a minute or so of thought, Alfred turned, flashing a small smile.

“I do not see any reason why I could not. You and Master Jason have proven yourself to be quite responsible, caring parents,” Alfred replied as he finished putting the last of the dishes away. “When I leave today, I will take the twins with me. You shall have the next few days for yourselves, until I return on Sunday. Does that sound agreeable?”

“Definitely. Thanks a ton, Alf,” Jason responded, raising his coffee cup.

Alfred finished his work at the apartment while Dick and Jason packed an overnight bag for the twins. They put in clothes, toys, diapers, bottles, and so on and so forth. When Alfred finished, he collected the bag, and Jason and Dick carried the twins out to the car.

“Thanks again Alfred. We really appreciate this,” Dick said with a smile on his face. Alfred smiled back at him and gave a wave as he started the car and left for the manor. The two of them stood there for a time, until the car vanished around a corner, then headed back inside.

“So…Jason, is your work as the Red Hood--”

“Already on it,” Jason interrupted, pulling out The Red Hood’s phone. He sifted through the contacts as he and Dick moved through the door into their apartment, closing it with his foot. He found Blackjack’s number and dialed it.

“Blackjack. Listen. I’m taking a day off. You and Queenie keep the rest of those fuckers in line,” Jason said evenly. He nodded as Blackjack gave a brief report of events. Jason frowned and Dick became a bit concerned by that. “It’s my day off. You tell that bastard, Jeremy, that if he so much as lifts a finger before I get back, I’ll break both his arms and legs,” Jason snapped angrily. “And as for Leon, I’m not concerned. Queenie can handle his bitch ass. Keep things in order. Understood? Good. Goodbye,” Jason snapped, hanging up the phone.

“Problem?” Dick asked, arching an eyebrow. Jason shrugged his shoulders.

“Oh, just a couple gang leaders, and a Drug Lord having a bitch fit over some trivial bullshit,” Jason replied, heading for the bedroom with Dick behind him. “I swear to god, it’s like looking after a bunch of rotten kids,” Jason added, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Is it anything to worry about?” Dick asked, standing in the doorway as he wanted Jason get dressed. Jason pull on a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt, combing his hair into place with his fingers He turned back to Dick and shook his head.

“No, it’s fine. Queenie and Blackjack have got things under control. Queenie especially; she’s got a low tolerance for bullshit,” Jason replied, lips tugging into a smirk. Dick smiled and walked over to the dresser to get dressed, pulling on a pair of jeans and a white button up shirt.

As Dick turned, Jason was on him, pushing him up against the wall and melting their lips together in a deep, passionate kiss. Dick moaned into the kiss, gasping as Jason’s lips moved down his jaw, to his neck, sucking up a mark right over his pulse point. Jason pinned the man’s hands against the wall above his head, then pushed his knee between his legs, grinding it against Dick’s crotch.

“Jay, stop,” Dick breathed out, faltering as he moaned low in his throat. “Jay. Jason. Stop,” Dick repeated, a little more firmly. He pressed his hand against Jason’s chest and gently pushed him away. Jason back up and his smug grin faltered slightly.

“Is something wrong?” Jason asked, stopping everything as his expression fell, replaced with one of concern. Dick panted a little as he took a few moments to gather his thoughts. He combed his hair back with his fingers and shook his head.

“No, nothing is wrong,” Dick replied, biting his lip.

“Then what’s up?” Jason asked, backing off a bit and crossing his arms over his chest. Dick rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged his shoulders.

“It’s just…call me old fashioned, and maybe I’m just a sap--”

“You are,” Jason teased, earning a playful punch on his shoulder.

“Shut up and listen,” Dick jabbed back. Jason chuckled a bit and raised his hands defensively. “Maybe…we could go on a date?” Dick suggested. Jason’s eyes widened a bit as he thought about it. Dick continued though, saying “we never…got the chance to go on our first date…y’know?” His expression turned a bit sullen, and immediately, Jason knew what Dick was talking about. He’d recovered his old phone from Bruce; he’d left it at the hotel in Qurac, and Bruce kept it. Jason played the last voice message, the one Dick had left for him…

“Hey,” Jason said with a smile, placing a hand on Dick’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about that. Shit happens, y’know? But now’s our chance, right?” Dick’s smile returned and brightened up the room.

“Well, I was thinking we could go see that new Wonder Woman movie in theaters,” Dick suggested. He grinned and playfully poked Jason in the side with his elbow. “I happened to remember a teenager who was a big Wonder Woman fan.” Jason blushed a little and rubbed the back of his neck. He turned and tired to hide his face, but he knew it was a little too late for that.

“What? You still remember that?”

“Of course. And hey, if we catch one of the later playing, we can go for a walk through the park, y’know? Maybe get some ice cream, then go to the theater, and then grab a bite to eat, yeah?”

“God, did you come out of a Chick Flick or something? You are just…so god damn sappy and corny,” Jason teased, earning another punch to his arm.

“Aw shut up Jaybird. I know there’s a romantic, deep down in there somewhere,” Dick replied, poking the man’s chest. Jason snorted and shook his head.

“Oh yeah, he’s in there alright. Waaaay down there.”

* * *

It was nice and sunny out, but a chill permeated the air. It was mid November so it hardly came as a surprise. Jason wore a red thermal shirt and a black leather jacket over it. Dick dressed a little bit warmer, with a white pullover V neck sweater and a dark blue zip up hoodie over it. It wasn’t too cold that they needed more than the one layer, but chilly enough that it was worth wearing a warm layer.

Jason and Dick walked down the sidewalk of the local park, holding hands, their fingers intertwined. They’d made a change of plans and went to the theater first. When they got there, Jason insisted on paying for everything.

“You know I have money too, right Jay?” Dick asked, arching an eyebrow. Jason shrugged his shoulders.

“It’s fine,” Jason replied, ordering a couple of bags of popcorn, a couple of sodas and a couple of boxes of snow caps candy. Dick and Jason each grabbed a set of snack food and then made their way into the theater. Jason opened the door to the viewing room of “Wonder Woman” and held it open.

“Milday,” he joked with a mock bow. Dick glared at him and jabbed him in the side with his elbow. Jason laughed and followed Dick into the room, finding their seats at the very back of the room.

“Fucker,” Dick shot back, but with a playful edge in his tone. Jason made a mock gasp stared at Dick in pretend shock.

“Did you, Dick Grayson, just swear?!”

“I did,” Dick replied, sticking out his tongue. Jason grinned and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“I’m so proud of you!”

“Shush, the movie is starting!”

The two of them were relatively silent throughout the whole movie, a few jokes and jabs aside. Occasionally, one or both of them would whisper too each other about what Wonder Woman would, or wouldn’t do throughout the movie, but otherwise, they watched intently. Jason especially. Dick liked the movie, but whenever he glanced at Jason, the man was always staring at the screen. He seemed really into it and frankly, Dick thought it was rather adorable.

As the movie drew to a close, the two of them rose from their seats and stretched their legs a bit. They shuffled out of the room with the other moviegoers, making sure to dump their trash, then left the theater. Jason wrapped an arm around Dick’s waist and pulled him close.

“That was a damn good movie, eh Dickie?” Jason asked with a grin on his face. Dick nodded in agreement, leaning up to steal a kiss.

“Oh yeah, definitely! I especially loved that scene where she charged the enemy through No Man’s land,” Dick began, and Jason interrupted enthusiastically.

“Right? Totally bad ass, right?” Jason replied. Dick chuckled a bit and flashed a grin at Jason. Jasonm blushed slightly when he realized he was totally fanboying right now.

“Oh god, I’m, turning into you,” he joked, facepalming. Dick laughed and patted the man’s shoulder.

“Nah, you’re just turning into you. You just have to stop hiding underneath all that armor. Make yourself vulnerable, a little, y’know?” Dick replied. Jason frowned a little at the reply; make himself vulnerable? Discard his armor? Dick was asking a lot, and he was worth it, really, it was just…he didn’t know _how_.

This armor was his protection on the streets; don’t get too close to anyone, don’t trust anyone, and keep to yourself. That was how you survived. Even after he was adopted by Bruce, he kept a thing layer of armor around himself, only let Dick, and Alfred, and Bruce peer through the veil. After he died, he built new armor, new barriers, and hid himself behind once more. It was difficult to open up, even more so after he died and came back.

“Jay? Something wrong?” Dick asked. Jason, snapped out of her reverie, shook his head.

“Nah, I’m fine.” Dick frowned a little, not believing it, but he let it go. Today was a good day so far; no sense in ruining it. As the two of them continued down the street, Jason’s arm around Dick’s waist, and Dick’s arm around Jason’s shoulders, they passed an ice cream shop.

“Hey Jaybird, how about some ice cream?” Dick asked cheerily. Jason turned as Dick made his way over to the ice cream cart, and arched an eyebrow.

“Why? We have an entire freezer at home full of ice cream,” Jason replied. Dick turned to him and flashed a smile.

“Aw, c’mon Jay. It’s a date! We should have ice cream!” Dick answered back. Jason snorted and rolled his eyes.

“Fuck no, it’s too cold for ice cream you dork,” Jason replied. Dick pouted a little and grabbed Jason’s hand, dragging him into the ice cream store.

“C’mon Jay, Ice Cream is fun! It’s good year round!” Dick replied. Jason rolled his eyes again, heaving a defeated sigh as he followed his boyfriend inside the ice cream parlor. It was rather busy for this time of year, which Jason found a bit odd. But then, perhaps Dick was right; Ice Cream was great no matter what.

When it was their turn, Dick hopped up to the counter and looked over their menu, not sure what he wanted.

“C’mon Dickie, just pick some damn ice cream,” Jason snapped, but with a teasing edge in his voice. Dick glared at him, a glare that held no real anger, and turned back toward the cashier.

“One scoop of Strawberry, and one scoop of Vanilla, in a chocolate ice cream cone, please,” Dick ordered. He glanced at Jason and nodded toward the menu. Jason frowned a little, but got the hint, shrugging his shoulders.

“One scoop of Dark Chocolate Mint. In a cone,” Jason put in. The cashier added it up and Jason forked over the cash. He and Dick took their ice cream cones and made their way out of the shop.

“Thanks!” Dick called back, happily munching away on his ice cream. They finished it without a mess, thanks to the cold air keeping the ice cream cold, and just continued walking aimlessly. Jason glanced down at his watch, and was, frankly, surprised by how much time had passed; they left the house at eleven, walked to, and around the park, and caught Wonder Woman at twelve-thirty. Now, it was almost three in the afternoon.

“Today has been fun, thank you Jason,” Dick suddenly said, smiling up at the man. Jason blushed slightly, almost unnoticeable, and smiled back.

“Sure,” Jason replied simply. They continued walking in relative silence, with no real destination in mind. They were just enjoying each other’s company.  

“How about we grab dinner? Something nice before we go home, hmm?” Dick asked, looking up at Jason again. Jason nodded in response.

“Sure. Sounds good."

“Any thoughts as to where?”

Jason was silent for a time as he thought about where to take Dick for dinner. Then, some old memories surface to the forefront of his mind, and he knew just where to do.

“Yeah, I’ve got an idea.”


	10. Finale

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "No, it can't be." A short, middle-aged Chinese Woman came out from the kitchen area and stopped when she got a look at Jason. The woman had few wrinkles and looked to be in her late 50s with short black hair, tied back into a bun, with a black chef's coat and pants on with a golden lotus flower on the upper left part of the coat. "You, boy. Jason Todd?" she asked. Jason grinned from ear to ear and she laughed, stepping forward and hugging the man. "It is! I know that grin anywhere! I not see you since you go to live with Mr. Wayne!" she said in a cheery tone.
> 
> "Hey Mama Cho, long time no see," Jason said with a smile as he hugged her back.

“Oh yeah?” Dick asked, curiosity piqued as Jason hailed a cab. He climbed in with Dick beside him.

“Yep. Driver, take us to the Golden Lotus, down in The Bowery,” Jason answered.

“You got it pal,” the driver replied, pulling away from the curb. Dick tried to pry Jason for more details, but the man wouldn’t give anything. And when they stopped before the restaurant, Jason paid the cabbie, and stared up at the building as nostalgia washed over him. The place hadn’t changed a bit. Jason turned to Dick and gestured for him to follow. Hand-in-hand and fingers enlaced, Jason and Dick made their way inside.

The Golden Lotus was a very traditional restaurant with a mural of a golden dragon and a golden phoenix on either side of a golden lotus flower, on the wall behind the hostess. The place was lit with red Chinese lanterns and had Chinese style arches between areas of the restaurant, with Chinese lacquer chairs and tables, decorated with red table clothes and random, origami, or rather _zhezhi_ , animals in the center of each table.

“Hello, can I help you?” asked a young Chinese girl at the front desk. Jason was about to speak when he heard a familiar voice nearby.

"No, it can't be." A short, middle-aged Chinese Woman came out from the kitchen area and stopped when she got a look at Jason. The woman had few wrinkles and looked to be in her late 50s with short black hair, tied back into a bun, with a black chef's coat and pants on with a golden lotus flower on the upper left part of the coat. "You, boy. Jason Todd?" she asked. Jason grinned from ear to ear and she laughed, stepping forward and hugging the man. "It is! I know that grin anywhere! I not see you since you go to live with Mr. Wayne!" she said in a cheery tone.

"Hey Mama Cho, long time no see," Jason said with a smile as he hugged her back. The woman smiled brightly and swatted his arm playfully.

"Seven years since I see or hear from you! Though I guess you were busy being dead for six of them,” she joked with a laugh, playfully jabbing him in the side with her elbow. You always welcome here! Come, come!" she said cheerily, grabbing Jason's arm and tugging him toward a table. "Now, tell me, who this handsome boy you with? Friend of yours?" she asked, as she led both Jason and Dick to a table. Jason blushed a little and glanced back at Dick.

“He’s, uh…my boyfriend,” Jason replied, rubbing the back of his neck. Dick extended his hand and flashed the woman a smile.

“Dick. Dick Grayson,” he said to her. She gasped and shook his hand.

“Oh, Dick Grayson! You famous! Ward of Bruce Wayne!” She said excitedly, turning to Jason. “He a good catch,” she “whispered” to him. Jason chuckled in amusement. “Li Mei Cho. Is an honor to meet you,” she replied. “What brings you here?”

“Oh, it’s kind of our first date,” Jason answered.

“Oh, first date you say? In that case, dinner on house! First date, most important. I will cook your meal personally!” Mrs. Cho said. She made her way off to the kitchen, barking orders to the staff in Mandarin. Jason shook his head and chuckled to himself, turning back to his boyfriend, who, frankly, looked a little lost.

“Oh, I should probably explain,” Jason said then. He hooked a thumb over his shoulder toward where Mrs. Cho had gone. “That was Li Mei Cho. We homeless kids used to call her “Mama Cho”. She was an immigrant, came here from China when she was only twenty, with her son Lee. She used to feed all of us homeless kids in the area after hours. Left overs, mostly.”

“Wow, she sounds great,” Dick replied, smiling at Jason. Jason chuckled to himself and leaned back in his chair, scrubbing his face with his hand.

“Yeah, she is. She caught me stealing food once, and instead of calling the cops, she grabbed me by the ear, dragged me inside, and cooked a meal for me,” Jason replied. “After that, she’d invite me by for a nice meal once a week. Even taught me to speak a little bit of Cantonese.”

"Oh he definitely my favorite. Only kid not my own that come by for more than just free food!" Mrs. Cho said as she zipped by them, barking orders to a couple of busboys. Dick laughed in amusement and then sighed.

“Huh. So she’s fluent in both Cantonese and Mandarin, then?”

“Yep.”

Mrs Cho returned to their table with a notepad in hand.

“Okay, what will you have?” she asked, ready to take their order. Dick looked over the menu for a few minutes while Jason placed is own order, immediately, in Mandarin.

“Oh, that a good order! Cantonese Roast Duck my specialty!”

“Hmm. I’m not sure. What would you recommend Mrs. Cho?” Dick asked.

“Bah, call me Mama Cho! And I suggest _jiǎo zi _.__  It’s a classic dumpling, but with beef, pork, sometimes vegetables inside them, with a black vinegar and chili sauce dip. Is very good,” Mama Cho explained. Dick gave a nod in reply.

“Alright then; _jiǎo zi_  if you’d please,” Dick ordered. Mama Cho wrote it down and gave a nod.

“Very good, your order be ready soon!” she said, turning and making her way for the kitchen. She barked more orders in Mandarin at her staff before making her way into the kitchen.

“This is a nice side of you I wish I’d seen before, Jay,” Dick said, resting his chin in his hand as a warm smile adorned his lips. He reached his other hand across the table and rested it on top of Jason’s. “You told me about this restaurant before, but I never knew you were this familiar with the place.” Jason shrugged his shoulders.

“Yeah. I’ve always been a bit…guarded, I guess.”

“Y’know, this was actually where I was planning to take you for our first date. And now here you are, taking me. It’s funny how things work out, isn’t it?” Dick asked, leaning closer. Jason smiled a bit.

“Yeah, it is.” The two of them met across the table, their lips melting together in a tender kiss. The kiss was interrupted, however, when Mama Cho returned.

“So sorry to interrupt. Dinner will take some time. In the meanwhile, I brought you appetizers,” she said, placing a basket of buns and a plate of chicken wings on the table. ”Chinese Lotus Seed Buns and Xi’an Style Oven Fried Chicken Wings!” A waitress came over with two glasses in hand, setting one down in front of each of them.

“Here you are, sirs! Two Xianjiang Black Beers,” the waitress said, giving a bow of her head before retreating to the kitchen. Mama Cho chuckled a bit.

“Oh, it’s been so long since I have someone to spoil! Not since Lee go off to college!”

“So Mama Cho, how did you and Jason meet, exactly?” Dick asked curiously. Jason’s scrubbed his face with his hands and groaned at Dick’s request, and Mama Cho’s face lit up like Christmas. She grabbed a chair nearby and pulled it up to the table.

“Oh, that a good story! It after hours you see, and my son Lee closing up shop, taking out garbage, all that," she said, crossing her legs and giving a dismissive hand wave. She glanced over at Jason who chuckled a bit, pinching the bridge of his nose as he shook his head. She smiled at him, then looked over toward Dick.

"Anyway, Lee good boy, but sometimes daft. He leave back door open, and this messy little street kid smell food and sneak in through back. No one see him, sneaky little bastard," she said, earning a bark of laughter from Jason.

"Well, yeah. I was kind of used to sneaking around at that point. I was also pretty handy with a lock pick," Jason admitted with a shrug. Mama Cho swatted his arm playfully and continued.

"Anyway, this boy steal food right off counter! How he managed that without no one seeing, I still don't know. He try to sneak back out, but I see him. So I shout at him in Cantonese. He looked like deer caught in headlights, but before he could run, I catch up, grab him by ear and haul his ass inside! One look at him though and I see he starving boy. Homeless, not have much to eat. So I cook him up nice meal, feed him, scold his ass," she said, shooting a glare with no real anger over at Jason "and invite him to come back any time. From that day forth, he drop by once a week. Not just for food either. I teach him Cantonese, we play Pai Sho, and soon he become like second son," she said, patting him on the shoulder and giving him a warm smile.

“Wow, that’s…nice,” Dick said, looking over at Jason who simply cracked a smirk.

“Okay, I go check dinner! Should be done now!” And with that, the old woman disappeared back into the kitchen.

* * *

Dick and Jason made their way home, taking a cab as opposed to hoofing it clear across the city. Jason pushed the door open and made his way inside with Dick behind him, kicking his shoes off at the door and closing it with his foot. No sooner had he gotten in the door, Dick shoved him up against it and kissed him roughly. Jason moaned into the kiss, taken by surprise by the sudden action.

“Fuck, it’s hot when you get all assertive like that,” Jason purred against Dick’s lips. Dick chuckled a bit and sealed his lips against Jason’s again, his hands settling on the man’s hips. Jason’s hand came up to cup Dick’s face, letting his thumb stroke idly over his cheek.

“Yeah?” Dick asked softly, pressing his knee between Jason’s legs and grinding it against his crotch. Jason groaned and let his head fall back, thudding lightly against the door.

“ _Fuck_. Bedroom. Now!” Jason ordered. Dick grinned and grabbed Jason’s hand, enlacing their fingers and leading him toward the bedroom. No sooner than they got in there, clothes started falling to the floor. The back of Jason’s legs hit the edge of the bed, and with a push, he fell back, Dick climbing up on top of him. Jason grinned as Dick climbed over him, then moaned when the man started attacking his neck with feather light kisses, licks and nips, leaving marks on his flesh. His arms curled around the man’s back, sliding down and grabbing at Dick’s ass.

“C’mon Dickie,” Jason encouraged, sliding one hand down the back of Dick’s pants, dipping beneath his briefs, to run over the bare flesh of his ass underneath. Dick moaned a bit, then pressed his lips to Jason. Jason reached around and popped the button on Dick’s jeans, and tugged down the zipper while they kissed. While one hand wandered over Dick’s chest and abs, the other pushed his pants and briefs down. Dick moved a bit to help get them off, then worked on Jason’s. Dick stopped his ministrations, ignoring his rock hard dick for a moment, to tug Jason’s pants and briefs down and off.

“God you’re beautiful,” Dick commented, taking a moment to take in the sight. Jason propped himself up on his elbows and grinned.

“I know,” he replied. Dick laughed and climbed back on top of Jason, sealing their lips together in another, deep, passionate kiss. He rocked his his slowly, the two of them swallowing each other’s moans as their cocks rubbed together, creating a delicious friction. Jason reached between them and gripped both their cocks, pumping them in his hand and pulling a moan out of himself and Dick. Dick thrust into his hand, pressing his lips to Jason’s in a sloppy kiss. With his free hand, Jason searched around blindly for the nightstand, pulling open the drawer and reaching inside for a condom and a small vial of lube.

“Jason,” Dick breathed, kissing Jason’s neck and thrusting into the man’s hand. Jason’s breath hitched at the sudden move. He pushed Dick off of him, gently, and shoved the condom and lube into his hand. Dick looked down at it and up at Jason, flashing a smirk. “Are you sure, Jay?”

“C’mon Dickie. I was only jerking off to this image since I was 15,” Jason replied, leaning in and stealing a kiss. Dick smirked a little as Jason pulled away, bringing his hand up to the man’s face to bring him in for another quick kiss. He pushed Jason back onto the bed and lubed up a finger, reaching between Jason’s legs and pressing it inside. He leaned down and kissed the man, swallowing Jason’s moans.

He slowly and carefully worked Jason open before adding a second finger. His hands wandered over the man’s body, one hand gripping his dick and giving it a few firm tugs. Jason broke the kiss, tilting his head back and letting out a groan.

“You’re so good, Jay,” Dick whispered in Jason’s ear. “You’re so tight. So hot,” Dick breathed, nibbling at his neck, just beneath his jaw. “So beautiful.” He pressed a third finger inside Jason, brushing his prostate. Jason let out a guttural moan, back arching off the bed.

“Nnngh, God! Dick!” Jason cried out, hips pushing back onto Dick’s fingers. Dick grinned and rubbed that spot again, tearing another moan out of Jason. “C’mon, stop teasing and fuck me already!” Jason growled when Dick did it again, followed by a gasp. Dick just snickered in amusement and did it again.

“C’mon Jay, where’s your sense of fun? Don’t you want to take things slow and enjoy it?” Dick whispered in the man’s ear. Jason bit his lip to suppress a moan, groaning and rolling his hips. His body was on fire, his blood surging with lust and need.

“Dick,” Jason whined. Dick gave a sigh and shook his head, despite his smirk. He pulled his fingers free, pulling out a disappointed sigh from Jason. Dick rolled the condom onto his length and lubed himself up. He pulled Jason up, flipping him onto his stomach and positioning himself at the man’s entrance.

“You ready Jay?” Dick asked, kissing Jason’s neck while his hands glided up and down his sides with feather light touches.

“Yeah. C’mon Dickie,” Jason responded, feeling his cock twitch in anticipation.  Dick gripped Jason’s hips and slowly pushed himself inside. Jason gasped and moaned at the push, feeling Dick penetrate him, inch by inch. Once Dick was fully inside, he heaved a sigh, raking a hand through his hair.

“Jaybird? You okay?” He asked. Jason gave him a thumbs up after he took a few moments to adjust to Dick’s size. It was one thing to see it; quite another to _feel_  it. “C’mon Jay, use your words,” Dick said with a slight laugh. Jason took a breath.

“Y-yeah, ‘m fine. Move, please.” Dick nodded and pulled out only slightly, giving the man a few slow, shallow thrusts. Jason moaned a little bit, and once Dick was more confident, he began thrusting a bit deeper, a bit faster.

“You’re so tight, Jay. So warm,” Dick whispered in Jason’s ear, leaning against his back. He wrapped an arm around the man’s torso, his hand settling on his stomach as he thrust deeper into Jason. Jason let out a loud moan when Dick struck his prostate.

“Oh fuck! Nnngh, you feel so good,” Jason breathed out. “Please, fuck me.”

“You sure, Jay?” Dick asked.

“Please.” Dick grinned and gripped Jason’s hips. He pulled out to the tip and slammed home. Jason nearly shouted in pleasure, his head tipping back, his fingers gripping the sheets hard. “Fuck! You feel so good, so big! Dick, please, don’t stop-- _nnngh_ ” Jason cried out as Dick fucked into him hard and fast. A hand reached around and gripped Jason’s cock; it was slick with pre-cum. He pumping in a tight grip in time with his thrusts, pulling a whine out of Jason.

“Damn,” Dick breathed in the man's ear, slamming home “you’re so beautiful Jay. Those sounds you make are so hot. Moan for me pretty bird.” Jason cries out, unable to hold off his own orgasm any long.

“I’m gonna--” Jason breathed, then cried out, shooting his load onto Dick’s hand. Dick keeps pumping him, keeps fucking him, his own cock throbbing inside Jason. “C’mon Dickie. Please, please,” Jason pants out. Dick let out a loud moan, panting heavily as his hips began to stutter. With one, final thrust, he came inside Jason hard, letting out a loud, lewd moan with it. He rides out his orgasm in waves, hips still pumping, hand lazily working Jason’s length, until at last he is spent. He and Jason collapse onto the bed together.

“Fuck…that was fucking amazing,” Jason breathed out between pants, his chest heaving and his every nerve still tingling as he basked in the after glow. Jason turns and reaches out and coaxing Dick to look at him. He pressed his lips against Dick’s in a sensual kiss, his tongue slipping into Dick’s mouth. He moans into the kiss when Dick pulls himself out. Dick slowly pulled off the condom without breaking the kiss, tying it off and tossing it in the trash can.

“Mmm, yeah. May’ve been the best sex of my life,” Dick replied with a slight laugh. There he and Jason lay, a tangle of sweaty, exhausted limbs. When Dick finally found the energy to move again, he untangled himself from Jason and sat upright, raking a hand through his hair.

“Can’t think of a better way to end a date than that,” Jason breathed out, grinning from ear to ear. “A walk in the park, a good action movie, some ice cream, a damn good mean,” Jason lists off, rolling onto his back to look at Dick “and amazing, sweaty sex to top it off. What could be better than that?”

“Join me for round two in the shower?” Dick asked with a wink and a grin.

“Don’t need to ask me twice,” Jason replied, pushing himself up off of the bed and following him into the bathroom.


End file.
